Hello again! Thank you all so much for being patient with me. You are seriously the best and if I could reach through my computer and hug you all individually, I would.

Enjoy...

Damon watched Elena walk away with his heart in his throat. How had his life spiraled so completely out of control in less than ten minutes? He'd been riding high, excited and proud that his relay team had made it to nationals and he'd been so eager to share the news with Elena. And then Katherine had shot it all to hell.

He moved to chase after her, but a hand on his arm stopped him. He turned to shake Stefan's grip off, but his brother only held on tighter.

"What the hell, Stefan?" he growled. "Let me go!"

"No," Stefan replied sternly. "You're only going to make it worse."

"She took something, Stefan! A…a pill or something, I can't just let her walk away." Damon's voice was full of desperation, but he couldn't find it in him to care.

Stefan's eyes narrowed and his grip loosened just a bit. "I'll take care of her. I'll make sure she's safe, okay?"

Damon knew his brother was right. Elena would only shut down more if he chased after her right now. She needed space, but he also needed to know she was safe. He nodded his agreement at Stefan, but caught his arm before he walked off.

"What ever you do, don't take her home," Damon said. Stefan looked confused, but didn't ask any questions.

Watching Stefan pull his keys from his pocket and jog off to his car, Damon fought the need to go with him. His heart was crying out for her, his arms yearning to hold her. He hated himself for hurting her, for lying to her, for not being the man Elena deserved.

His steps up the stairs were slow and heavy. The higher he climbed, the more his anger replaced his pain.

When he re-entered the apartment, Katherine was sitting on the couch - dressed, thankfully - legs crossed and picking at her nails without a care in the world. He felt his blood heat.

"So you're into pill poppers now?" she asked without even looking up.

"Shut up, Katherine," he snapped, curling his fingers into fists to keep from hitting the nearest wall.

She finally looked up at him then, tossing her long hair over one shoulder. He couldn't help but compare her's to Elena's. Where Katherine's hair was perfectly styled reeked of hairspray, Elena's was free and soft and smelled like her.

"Is that why you dumped me and moved out here? So you could act on some secret fetish you have with freaks?" His rage boiled over.

Damon's rage boiled over. "That's enough, Katherine!" he roared, slamming his fist into the wall and making her jump in surprise. "You are not my fiancée. You are not my girlfriend. You are not even my friend! I'm letting you stay here as a favor. A favor I'm deeply regretting right about now."

"Damon, it's not that big of a deal, geez," she said with an eye roll, feigning nonchalance.

"No. It is a big deal. It's a big fucking deal, Katherine!" he yelled, running his hands through his hair as he paced in front of her. "That girl who just stormed out of here," he started, gesturing to the front door. "I hurt her, maybe beyond repair. She's amazing and kind and funny, and I'm very sure that I'm in love with her. She doesn't deserve to be manipulated by you, okay? You leave her alone, Katherine, or so help me God, I will make your life miserable."

Damon noted the flash of fear in her eyes before she covered it up with an indifferent shrug. Before she could retort, Stefan walked through the door, keys in hand.

"Did you find her? Is she staying somewhere safe?" Damon asked in a rush.

"She refused to let me take her anywhere," Stefan explained. "But I followed her. I think she's staying wherever Jeremy is tonight."

Damon nodded. "Thank you, Stefan."

"Just know," Stefan said seriously. "If she ever gives you a chance to explain, your apology better be epic."

How the hell had he let Katherine convince him to come out tonight? Probably because she'd given him the most genuine apology of her entire fucking life. He must have been so shocked that he hadn't even realized he was agreeing to hit the bar for "some fun" before catching the last flight of the night back to Tennessee. So Stefan, Katherine, and him had piled into his Camero and headed straight to the Mystic Grill. A stiff drink had sounded pretty good after his shitty week.

Seeing Elena at school after their blow-up had been a lesson in cruel and unusual punishment. She'd said one, single, cold word to him when he'd attempted to beg for her forgiveness. With that one word – her harsh 'no' when he asked to talk to her - she'd spoken to him and looked at him like she looked at everyone else there. And that hurt more than anything. He was the one person she'd trusted, that she'd shown her true self too, and he'd destroyed it.

He made a beeline for the bar as soon as he walked in. Without acknowledging a single person, he ordered himself a glass of bourbon. It was one of those nights. The Grill was packed and he looked over his shoulder to see Katherine dragging Stefan through the crowd of people to a dartboard.

"Damon, you look wrecked." He turned to find Alaric sitting a few barstools down, nursing a glass of the very same bourbon. He always knew he liked Alaric.

"You have no idea how wrecked I want to be right now," Damon muttered, taking a sip and letting the familiar burn soothe him.

"Still haven't patched things up with Elena?" Alaric asked, in the know because Damon had finally cracked after four days of slamming drawers and grunting out one-word answers.

He sighed and took another swig. "No, she won't even look at me."

"I hate to interrupt," an unfamiliar voice came from behind them. "But are you Elena's Damon?"

Damon turned to find a middle-aged woman with short blonde hair standing behind him. She looked oddly familiar to him, but he didn't think he'd ever met her before. "Yeah?"

"Ric, do you mind if I talk with Damon a moment?" she asked.

Ric saluted her with his glass tumbler. "Sure thing, boss."

She turned to Damon, holding out her hand to him. "Liz Forbes," she introduced herself, shaking his hand. "I'm an attorney. Can we speak somewhere a little more private?"

Forbes? As in Caroline Forbes? Holy shit.

With glass in hand, Damon followed Liz to a secluded booth away from the Friday night crowd.

"So," he started, having no clue why this woman would want to speak to him. "What is this about?"

Liz breathed a sigh before placing her intertwined fingers on the table, her serious face staring down at them. "Has Elena ever told you about her mother?"

Having no idea where this conversation would go, he answered reluctantly. "Not much, though we visited her graveside last week."

Liz seemed to contemplate that a moment before looking back up at him. "Izzy was my best friend. She was feisty, spirited, whip smart and incredibly loving." She gave him a raised eyebrow. "Sound familiar?"

Yeah, it sounded familiar. It described Elena perfectly. Unable to help himself, he smiled a bit at the shared qualities between mother and daughter.

"Well, that was until John," Liz continued, and Damon could hear the chill in her voice at the mention of Elena's father. "They were happy initially, and I was happy for my best friend, but then things started to change. My best friend was no longer the happy and loving woman she once was. I could see it in her eyes, I could see it in her kids' eyes."

He flinched at the implications.

"I can see it on your face. You can guess what he did to Isobel. What he does to Elena…" Liz said, her voice dropping low as it trailed off.

Oh God. He didn't want to be right about that. He never wanted to be right about what kind of hell Elena was living in. "I have some ideas," he growled.

Liz nodded, confirming his suspicions with sad eyes. "Elena tried to press charges once before. I was the one who picked her up from the hospital that day. I saw plain as day what he did to her."

Damon's fists clenched painfully from even the idea that Elena had been hurt so badly that she'd needed to be hospitalized. It nearly made him sick. He took a healthy swig of his bourbon, hoping it would calm him enough to hear Liz out.

"Why didn't you help her?!" He tried not to sound like he was accusing her, but failed miserably. He was barely keeping his rage in check.

Liz's eyes grew wide and she glanced around, making sure nobody had heard him. "I tried," she bit out through gritted teeth. "But John's the chief of police. He weaseled his way out of it, and Elena was too scared to mention it again. You've heard the rumors about Elena after it was all over. She shut down, acted out. We tried to convince her to help us build a case against him, but she wouldn't trust anyone, not after she'd been burned once already."

"We?"

She nodded. "Jeremy and me. It's actually why I'm here talking to you now."

Understanding dawned on him and he sat back in the booth. "Jeremy thinks I can get through to her."

"He's worried," she explained. "It's the end of the football season and he's got tournaments. He's home less and less, and he doesn't want her alone in that house with John."

"Elena and I aren't exactly on the best of terms right now," he admitted, dropping his eyes and hating how that statement tasted on his tongue.

"Look, Damon," Liz said seriously, her voice soft now and full of compassion for the girl he loved. "Despite what may be going on between you two, from what Jeremy tells me, you're the first person she's let in since Izzy died. I know you care about her, I can see in your eyes that you might even be in love with her. We need your help, Damon. She needs your help. I swore to Izzy that I'd take care of them, but my hands are tied without Elena's testimony. More than that, I want to keep her alive. I refuse to let what happened to Izzy happen to Elena, too."

Her words settled like a rock in the pit of his stomach. The thought of Elena ending up like her mother was devastating. So much so that his brain nearly shut down at the mere idea of it.

"There you are," Katherine interrupted, glancing between him and Liz curiously. "Are you ready to go?"

Shit, he had to take Katherine to the airport, but he needed to get to Elena and make sure she was safe. Elena was his number one priority. He dug into his pocket and found his keys, tossing them to Stefan as he joined them.

"You guys go, I need some air," Damon said, gesturing with his head to the empty glass tumbler. "Have a safe flight, Kat."

He got up to move past them, but her hand on his arm stopped him. He controlled the urge to rip his arm away.

"I really am sorry about what happened, Damon," she said softly, her voice and eyes full of sincerity. "You didn't deserve that, and I shouldn't have judged her."

Damon nodded and attempted a smile, but he knew it looked as forced as it felt. He pushed past them, his sole goal to get to Elena, to protect her and make sure she was safe.

Outside, the cool air helped him breathe. He needed to be levelheaded when he spoke to Elena. He needed her to listen.

He cut through the alley on the side of the Grill, knowing he would get to her house faster that way.

"Salvatore!"

Stopping in his tracks, he turned to see Tyler and a few other guys from the team approaching. Damon had a bad feeling about this. Something about the way they were walking with their chests puffed out made him uneasy.

"What's up guys?" he asked, attempting to sound nonchalant.

Tyler scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "Not your dedication to this team."

Damon resisted the eye roll he so desperately wanted to give Tyler. "It's just been a bad week."

"You're letting that piece of trash get to you and ruin our chances at Nationals," Tyler spat, his words filled with venom and hate that set Damon's blood on fire.

"She's not trash," he bit back, his ears roaring and his control slipping.

"She is!" he laughed sardonically. "Not even her own father loves her. God, she even tried to report him to the police, claiming he was abusing her, and when nobody believed her, she turned into a little slut. She's an attention whore and not worth anyone's time of day."

Damon had him by the shirt and against the brick wall in a matter of seconds. "Watch your fucking mouth, Lockwood," he roared.

"Or what, Damon?" Tyler asked, his eyes mocking Damon's pain. "Is that mentally unstable piece of ass really worth risking Nationals?"

He didn't think, only reacted. The crack of his fist hitting Tyler right in the jaw was not nearly as satisfying as he wanted it to be. And it'd hurt like hell. Damon turned right as Tyler's fist hit him in the kidney, and he hissed and ducked just as another fist came flying at him. Shit. It was five to one. He was royally screwed.

His teammates descended, holding him immobile while Tyler rained blows to Damon's face. Only his face, though, as they all knew the team couldn't afford to have Damon sitting out their next swim meet. It was over almost as fast as it began, Tyler's message received loud and clear. His teammates pushed him to the ground before stalking away.

Pushing through the pain in his face, Damon got to his feet and started walking, still headed to Elena's. Her safety was more important than some superficial wounds, even if they hurt like hell and wouldn't stop bleeding. But that didn't matter. His need to get to Elena trumped everything else. After Liz had confirmed his suspicions, he couldn't think of anything but getting Elena out of that house.

He trudged through the alleyway and out onto the street. He regretted letting Stefan and Katherine take his car, but there was no way in hell he was going to call them back. He kept his head down, lumbering along and hoping he wouldn't draw any unwanted attention.

"Damon?"

Her voice was like a balm to his beaten body. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed that voice. Turning slowly, he found Elena's car pulled over on the side of the road behind him, and she was slowly approaching him on the sidewalk. God, she was beautiful. He had to fight the urge to pull her body against his and wrap himself around her.

"Oh my God! What happened?" He almost smiled like a total asshole at the concern in her voice. So different from the indifferent girl he'd seen all week.

"Tyler happened," he said simply. If this was what it took to get her attention, then so be it. He knew his injuries weren't life threatening and that they looked a lot worse than they felt, but he kept those facts to himself. If Elena knew he wasn't hurting as much as it looked like he was, she might get back into her car and never speak to him.

"He did this to you?" she gasped as she stepped closer, her fingers cautiously touching the bruise he knew was already forming on his cheek. "Why?" she whispered.

"Let's just say I haven't been very motivated in practice this week," he answered, looking her right in the eye as he spoke. She needed to know. She needed to understand what she meant to him. What not being with her was doing to him.

She dropped her gaze and took a deep breath before returning it again. "Come on, get in the car. You need to get those cuts taken care of."

He nodded, but inside he was vibrating with nervous energy. Would this be his one and only chance to get her back? He slid into the passenger seat and stayed silent during the short drive to her house.

"Your dad isn't home?" he asked cautiously, as they pulled into the driveway.

"No, he's away for the weekend," she said, and he could hear the relief in her voice. He thought back to Liz's words in the bar. Could he trust that she wasn't just another person who was out to make Elena's life miserable? Could he believe that she really wanted to help, that she really believed Elena's claims?

Damon followed Elena into the dark house, up the stairs and with a deep breath, into her bedroom. She led him to the bathroom, gesturing for him to take a seat on the closed toilet. She worked quietly and efficiently, staying just out of reach. She cleaned each cut and iced each forming bruise. The longer she worked, the more she seemed to forget that wall she'd put up between them. She would sway closer, her fingers lingering longer on his skin. It was sweet, sweet torture.

She was just pulling the ice off his cheek when he couldn't stand the distance any longer.

"Elena," he whispered hoarsely, reaching up slowly to cup her face in his hand. Her eyes fluttered shut as she leaned into his hand and let out a sigh of relief, as if she'd been carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders until he came along to relieve her of her burden. "I'm so sorry."

He felt the exact moment when the tension flooded her body again, and he assumed that she'd remembered why she was so angry with him. He felt the loss down to his bones when she pulled away from his touch. His fingers ached to grab her by her hips and pull her back into him. To hold onto her so tight that she'd never escape, but she stayed just out of reach, erecting that brick wall between them once again.

He knew she would keep retreating if he let her. He needed to change his approach.

"You should be good," she said, not looking up as she worked to clean the bathroom counter.

He rose slowly, keeping his eyes trained on her reflection in the mirror, as he took slow measured steps toward her. He noticed Elena go stiff the moment she felt his presence looming behind her and the way her fingers curled into the edge of the counter as if to anchor her.

"Please don't," she pleaded softly, hanging her head.

The desperation in her voice almost made him back off, almost made him walk away, but he couldn't. He couldn't be without her.

Carefully, he placed his hands on her hips and turned her around to face him. She moved reluctantly, keeping her eyes closed and her head down.

"Elena," he whispered, his voice breaking. Gently, he tilted her head up, forcing her to look him in the eyes. To see just how sorry he was. "I lied to you."

She said nothing, only stared up at him with those big brown eyes.

"I should've told you about Katherine," he continued. "But I don't want to be with Katherine. I haven't been for a very long time now. I want you more than I ever wanted her. You make me laugh and you challenge me, and I've been miserable without you. You make me happy, Elena. Only you."

Elena's eyes turned glassy halfway through his speech, and it slayed him to know that he'd hurt her so badly. That he could have prevented all of this so easily if he'd just been honest with her from the start. She was strong enough to handle his past; he was the weak one.

"Please don't make me be without you," he begged, cupping his hand around the back of her neck and leaning in slowly until his forehead touched hers. He closed his eyes and waited. It was her choice and he'd never take that from her, no matter how much her rejection would hurt.

He lost track of time as they stood there like that, but when her fingers eventually slid around his waist, his eyes flashed open. Was this her way of saying she forgave him?

"Elena?" He couldn't stop the hope from seeping into his voice.

"Don't ever do that again," she breathed, pulling him flush against her.

He wanted to smile, but it could wait until after he kissed her. He had to know it was real. She returned his kiss, pressing herself into him and fisting her fingers into his shirt. He couldn't get enough of her soft lips, or the little sounds she made or how she sucked his tongue into her mouth greedily. She knew just what to do to drive him crazy.

Wrapping his fingers around her hips, he lifted her onto the counter and moved between her spread legs, pressing himself into her center. The moan that ripped its way out of her throat nearly drove him wild with lust. God, he missed touching her. He missed how her skin tasted, and how she felt under his hands, under his body. Her hands pushed up his shirt, and he pulled away just enough to allow her to tug it over his head and for him to return the favor. He barely had time to take her in before she was already pulling his lips back to hers. With deft fingers, he unclasped her bra and slipped it down her arms, dropping it unceremoniously onto the floor.

With both hands, he cupped her breasts, flicking her nipples with his thumbs and causing her to throw her head back with a strangled cry. His lips trailed down her neck, sucking on the sweet spot at the base before continuing downward. His mouth alternated between breasts, sucking them into his mouth and gently scraping his teeth across her nipples. Her fingers threaded in his hair, urging him on with every tug. Pulling away, he unbuttoned her jeans and she lifted her hips to help him tug them off, along with her panties.

He kissed her once more before his mouth moved lower and he dropped onto his knees. He took a moment just to look at her spread out for him, reveling in the trust she still had in him, even after he'd almost shattered it beyond repair. His eyes locked with hers as he slowly kissed his way toward her center. Her eyes were smoldering with heat and with something much deeper. Her fingers tightened in his hair when he reached his destination and with one taste, he was a goner. He lost himself in the way she tasted, taking his cues from the sounds she made and the way she pulled at his hair.

He didn't tease her, only worshipped her with his mouth and hands until she exploded. He watched her face while she rode the pleasure out, loving the way she let herself go for him. When her eyes finally opened again, she gazed at him with such tenderness it nearly knocked him over. He rose to his feet, wondering if his eyes shined like hers. He felt like they did. He kissed her slowly, savoring her every move and breath, loving the way her tongue reached out to taste herself on his lips. They continued to kiss slowly, and he enjoyed every second of it. Having her in his arms again, after a week without her, felt like a miracle. A miracle that she forgave him, a miracle that she still trusted him, a miracle that she still wanted him.

He wrapped Elena in his arms and lifted her off of the counter. She clung to him as he carried her into her bedroom and gently laid her on the bed. She leaned up on her elbows, looking more like a goddess than a human, and watched him as he discarded his pants and quickly rolled on a condom.

She grabbed for him the second he was within arms reach. He fell onto the bed and right into the cradle of her thighs, hissing when her heat practically scalded him. With one quick kiss to her lips, he positioned himself and sank into her, causing them both to sigh with relief. She felt like heaven and the way she wrapped herself around him made him pause, needing to take a moment to just look at her. To thank his lucky stars that she'd let him back into heaven again at all. He smoothed the hair off her forehead and gave her a tender kiss before he started to move. Elena held on, crying out when he hit the spot that he knew she loved. She kissed and nipped and tasted every inch of his skin that she could reach, making it even harder for him to hold onto his control. She was as much a participant in their lovemaking as he was, and he loved that she was his equal in every way.

As their pace quickened, he found it harder and harder to hold back the words of love that were on the tip of his tongue. He knew she wasn't ready for that, but everything in him wanted to run and shout it from a mountaintop. He wanted her to feel loved and cherished and beautiful, like she deserved to.

Elena cried out his name when she finally fell over the edge and the desperate, strangled sound tipped him over as well. He buried his face in her neck, biting the skin lightly as the waves of ecstasy crashed over him. The way her inner walls gripped him only prolonged his orgasm and once it finally subsided, he collapsed on top of her in a sated mass.

Her fingers coasted up and down his slick back as he came back to earth. He loved the way he was still buried deep inside her and the way she cocooned him with her body. There really was no place he'd rather be than wrapped up in her like this.

He kissed her softly on the lips before rolling off of her, cleaning himself up and then cuddling back up to her. She lay facing him, her hands stroking his chest and shoulders while he just gazed at her. He gently pushed a strand of hair out of her face and tucked it behind her ear. When she looked up at him through her thick lashes, he knew he couldn't stay quiet any longer.

"Elena," he whispered, trailing his fingers over the softness of her cheek. She studied him questioningly, but waited for him to continue. He took a deep breath as he built up his courage. It was now or never.

"You're going to pack a bag and come stay with me."

So I already have chapter 12 written and maybe, just MAYBE I'll post it next weekend instead of making you wait. Just send my musie lots of love and inspiration as I work on chapter 13. We're getting into the final stretch here and I'm excited for what's to come. *evil laughter*

I need to give a HUGE thank you to Layla Reyne. She makes these chapters worth reading. Truly. So if you guys want an awesome story to read, I HIGHLY recommend her story, The Left Coast. I read the chapter she's posting today and it's amazing. Seriously. Go. Read it. Now.

After, of course, you leave me a review! They are love and my musie appreciates them, too.