"Hello Elena, Stefan." Alyssa, one of the producers said coldly and emotionlessly as the couple walked into the tiny room. They greeted her with polite but anxious words, taking a seat in the leather couch directly across from the chair that Alyssa was in.

Elena hesitantly reached out for Stefan's hand, which he held gently but firmly. His simple action seemed to calm her nerves; they hadn't been asked to speak with the producers since they were brought to the airport in the limo. "It's awfully late," Stefan said politely. "Is this urgent?"

"Yes," Alyssa replied sternly, her silicone lips in a firm line. "We need you both to leave the show."

Elena's eyes widened more than they should have, and her posture notably stiffened. She furrowed her brows. "Excuse me?"

Alyssa sighed, "You are disqualified from the show. I'm sorry."

Stefan's grip on Elena's hand tightened, his gaze confusedly fixated on the producer across from them. "Would you care to explain why?"

Crossing her legs, Alyssa let out a deep breath and reached into her bag, mumbling, "I should have listened to Eric." Finally, she pulled out a little leather book with the letter "E" elegantly written on the top corner. "Is this yours?" she asked.

With a furious gasp, Elena glared. "How did you get that?"

Alyssa did not reply, but simply changed the subject. "Is it true that you both came into this competition for money, and that you were not in love at all?" Her voice was polite, but Stefan couldn't help but recognize her slight bitterness.

"We were in love," Stefan corrected levelly. "We just didn't know it."

Elena greatly admired Stefan's words, and his calm attitude. Gently, she caressed the back of his hand with her thumb. "First off, even if someone did show that to you, or however you got my diary, you should NOT have read it! And second, we were -are- best friends. But you see, I've always viewed Stefan as more, and he's always viewed me as more. We just didn't realize that until a few weeks ago," she tried to explain.

This answer did not seem to please Alyssa, for she glared slightly and looked between them. "So you were not in love when you came into this competition? You do realize that you signed a contract about this..."

"It doesn't matter!" Elena snapped furiously. "We are now!"

Alyssa eyed them both again, making them feel like animals in a zoo under her intense stare. "I had a good impression when I first met you two. You surely fooled our viewers too. Congratulations," she hissed, her attitude clear now. "You do realize this just makes the show look bad."

Stefan bit his lip. "No one even has to know. We can keep participating without anyone finding out. Does it really matter what happened when we first came, as long as things are alright now?" he offered.

"There's no way that I can tell if you're lying now," she said in reply. "You broke your contract. I don't know if we can overlook this. Do you really love him, Elena?"

"I do." She nodded; there was absolutely no hesitation. "I'm in love with him."

Alyssa shifted her gaze to Stefan, who was currently frozen in shock, staring up at Elena. She loved him? "Are you in love with Elena, Stefan?"

He jumped and quickly turned his attention back to Alyssa. "I... uh," he trailed off, moving his eyes to the ground. Did he love Elena? Absolutely. Did he want to announce this right in front of Alyssa in a moment like this? "Umm..."

Alyssa's huge lips turned to a scowl. "See? We don't need these kind of games on our show. We're going to politely ask you to leave. And if you are given any interviews, we'd recommend that you don't speak about the reason you were disqualified, for it would just make the show look bad."

Stefan exhaled deeply and shamefully, refusing to look at Elena who was clearly staring at him with a look full of pain. "And what if we do?"

"Then I suppose we'll have to put you in court for breaking your contract. If you two stay silent about it, then you don't have to worry. Just announce that you've broken up."

"What!" they both shouted at the same time.

Alyssa brushed something off of her skirt. "We'd like it if you could leave tonight. The limo is waiting outside."

Elena wordlessly walked through the hall with Stefan when her gaze shifted to Katherine, who waved with a smirk. She stepped away from him and strutted over to the smug brunette, steps fueled with anger.

"It was you, wasn't it?" Elena demanded.

Bored, Katherine rested against the counter. "I have no idea what you're talking about, 'Lena." She giggled. "Oh, you mean the diary? Yeah... at that party you really should have been careful about who you let into your room. But it's okay, right? You got your beloved book back."

She clenched her fists at her side. "You screwed everything up!"

Katherine gave a mock pout. "Oh no, did I cause a problem in your perfect relationship with my ex boyfriend? I'm truly sorry, dear." Her silky voice was rushing with sarcasm, and Elena was about to walk away, until she got the courage to turn back around.

With a deep breath, Elena slapped Katherine hard across the face. "Bitch," she muttered proudly and walked up the stairs to say goodbye to the friends she had made over the past month.

Elena packed her bags in angry silence. What was wrong with Stefan? Why didn't he just answer Alyssa's question with a simple yes? Why did he have to get them kicked off of the show; surely Alyssa was willing to give them another chance, wasn't she?
But then again, maybe he just didn't love her. Not like she loved him.

For the first time, Elena had admitted it, that she loved Stefan. And he replied by avoiding eye contact and saying something vague and definitely not reassuring. Maybe it was her fault; maybe she said it too soon and it freaked him out.

Or maybe he just didn't love her.

She breathed out, hearing the door to their room open and Stefan's heavy footsteps. Elena turned, grabbing her suitcases and walking in his direction, toward the door.

"Stefan," she started deeply, emotionlessly.

"Your stuff is already in the limo," he said almost solemnly. "I called a hotel."

She nodded and simply strutted past him, out the door and into the hall. So, with a strange ache rising in his chest, Stefan followed.

They rode in the limo, enveloped by awkward silence. Every time Stefan turned to look at Elena, she was staring at something only she could see, and he knew with a pang that he was the cause.

Now, they were settling in at a small hotel room, a dull contrast to the fantastic suite they had previously stayed in on Perfect Match. This place was plain and austere, with a white bed and white walls.

And Elena still hadn't made any eye contact with Stefan since their meeting with Alyssa.

He watched as she roughly opened up her suit case -which he had messily packed for her- and rummaged through it to find some clean clothes to change into. She did this for a few seconds until she just gave up, throwing the shirt in her hands to the ground in frustration.

"Stop taking it out on your stuff," Stefan said. His voice had the smallest tone of teasing, an attempt to lighten the dark mood, but overall it was filled with tension. "You know, I'm right here. You can talk to me."

"And what am I supposed to say, Stefan?" she snapped. "We could still be on that show right now! She was going to give us a second chance."

Stefan clenched his jaw. "So what, we didn't win the money. Did you really expect us to anyway?"

Elena turned to look at him, attempting to calm herself down. "We had a chance, didn't we? You blew it!"

He crossed his arms over his chest and simply stared, shaking his head sadly. "This isn't about the competition, is it?"

Her chest rose and fell with every single furious inhale and exhale. "Of course it is! We were doing so well!" she yelled, taking a step closer to him. "Why couldn't you have just said that you loved me? She would have believed you! Why didn't you just lie, Stefan?"

And there it was. All of the pain and the sorrow in his eyes fading to anger; she knew exactly how to get to him, to make his heart shatter and make his body shake. "You think that would be a lie?" he uttered and moved closer. "Did you ever think... for a second, about what I was feeling in that moment?"

Elena breathed out deeply, their bodies inches apart. She had to glance up in order to meet his blazing green eyes. "You seemed to not have an answer," she whispered.

The mood in the room drastically shifted, to something neither of them could describe. Elena could feel Stefan's breath against her lips, and she wanted to kiss him; she wanted to kiss him more than ever, but she wanted to scream at the same time. Why did he have to be so damn attractive?

But he seemed to have more self control than she did, for the sudden rage in his eyes faded to a fathomless sadness. "You said you loved me... in front of a near stranger," he stated.

She didn't blink, staring back up at him with the same intensity. "And you didn't," she replied.

"I didn't say it," he confirmed. "But that doesn't mean that I don't feel it. Didn't it cross your mind that it wasn't the right moment?"

Elena stared up at him in wonder, until it turned to a slight bitterness. She scoffed. "That's what this is about? Your obsession with preserving our moments?"

And with her nonchalant nudge at his words, Stefan stepped away from her and walked to the window, an attempt to control his returning anger. He clenched the windowpane and Elena just looked at him, frozen in place.

They stayed like this for a few minutes, calming themselves down, until Elena gathered the courage to speak. "Do we really need moments, Stefan?" she wondered aloud. He lifted his head but did not turn. "I love you. Anyone can see that. Do you need some cliche moment to prove that? Isn't it enough just to know?"

Finally, Stefan turned around. So, she kept talking and approached him.

"This is such a dumb fight. I know you're traditional, and that you want to take things slow. I know that you believe that everything should happen the right way. But that's not life, Stefan. That's not how things happen. Tonight, I told you that I loved you. And it doesn't matter how, it doesn't matter why. All that matters is what I said and that I meant it." Her eyes bore through his and he slowly nodded, closing his eyes when she raised her hands and held his face. "And whether or not you feel it too."

"I've just waited so long to be with you like this," he breathed out, closing his eyes. "And I don't want to mess it up. I just want everything to be perfect..."

Laughing gently, Elena caressed his face. "Everything isperfect, Stefan. We don't need candles and moonlight to prove that." She moved in slowly and softly pressed her lips to his. "No matter what, when it's you and me, everything's perfect. Okay?"

He smiled. "Alright."

With that, Elena nodded softly and dropped her hands from his face. She casually strolled over to her suit case and grabbed her pajamas, leaving them on the top of the bed to put on after she got ready. He just watched her, and stared as she grabbed a towel from the closet, heading into the bathroom.

"Elena," he got out.

She turned to face him, smiling just a bit. "Yeah?"

He bit his bottom lip, suddenly realizing his hands were shaking. Her chocolate brown eyes were full of gentle detachment -an indication to the aftermath of their fight-, until he finally willed himself to move. Before she could even register it, his lips were against hers, softly but urgently, just the way she liked it...

When he pulled away, it wasn't even an inch, just enough space for him to audibly whisper, "I love you."

Her heart jumped, and she was convinced for the hundredth time that she'd forever belong to him. The simple desperation in his voice mixed with the overwhelming passion was nothing short of incredible. She smiled into the kiss, so much that their teeth clanked together, not that they really minded. Throwing the towel in her hand behind her, she needfully gripped his hair, pressing herself as close to him as possible. She could hear his sharp gasp and moan in response and responded by deepening the kiss, running her tongue along his lower lip until he gained her access. His hands slid around her waist to her back, pressing her even closer.

Stefan was the one to back them up to the bed.

Elena's head spun when she felt her back hit the mattress, and she quickly grabbed the front of his t-shirt to drag him down with her. Hands tangling in her rich, coffee hair, he slid his hands under her to pull her close. Victim to his closeness and his heavenly touch, Elena closed her eyes and dropped her head to one side so that he could shower her neck with kisses. When his hands slid beneath her t-shirt to gently trace circles along the skin of her stomach, her skin spread with the sweetest gooseflesh. "Stefan," she muttered. He lifted his head, placing another kiss on her lips before locking eyes with her. "Are you sure about this? Earlier today you told me that-"

He gazed at her softly. "Tonight, someone told me love isn't about cliches and noteworthy moments. It's about the present. Someone opened my eyes tonight and taught me it's not about places or occasions... it's about two people. Two people who think the world of each other. That's love. This is love."

Elena laughed, slowly raising her fingers to memorize every line on his face. "You're cheesy," she giggled. "But so poetic. I love that about you."

Grinning, Stefan kissed her again. "Wait... Are yousure about this?"

She nodded and responded by pulling him in for another searing lip lock, which he eagerly responded to. She helped him lift his shirt over his head and briefly took in the sight of his perfectly sculpted torso; he was so beautiful... and all hers. And when her own shirt was off, and his fingers glided along her bare back, she shivered and kissed him, their connected displaying every ounce of love they had for each other.

They pulled away from this kiss again, eyes locked on one another in a look full of endless love and desire. Without losing precious eye contact, Stefan reached over, turned the lamp off, and pulled her close once again. And they picked up right where they had left off.

It was perfect, flawless... Elena and Stefan at the top of the world. Their world.

AN: Ahhhh Stelena! I really hope this chapter was okay... I had some serious writer's block. I almost gave up in the middle of writing it, so I apologize if it seems a little off or something. What do you think? I know... I'm mad at myself for taking them off the show, but now they get to go home if you want to see it! Haha

Please let me know what you think! I'm not sure if I should keep going and write about what happens once they get home or if I should just end it here. Let me know what you think!

Let me know what you loved, what you hated... every single review inspires me so much! :)

Thank you for reading! Xoxo,

Sara