A/N: Just a light and fluffy chapter to mend our broken hearts. Hope you enjoy!

Stefan smiled, lying in bed with his eyes still closed the next morning. Visions of the night before played in his mind. Stefan reached over for Elena, feeling entirely too incomplete by himself on his side of the bed. His eyes opened suddenly when he didn't feel her.

She wasn't there. Stefan sat up some, scanning the room. She wasn't in the bathroom either. Slowly, he got out of bed and walked to his dresser to pull a pair of briefs and sweats on to go in search of her. "Elena?" he asked, walking into the living room. Nothing.

He was confused. Her jacket and clothes were gone too. Had she snuck out and bailed on him? It was upsetting to think she would do that, especially after the conversation they had had the night before. He sighed, feeling defeated. As he walked towards his couch to sit down, the front door opened slowly, revealing Elena on the other side.

She froze when she saw him, like she was a teenager sneaking back into her house after breaking curfew. "Hey" she said softly, smiling. She closed the door behind her and Stefan could see a brown paper bag in her hand. "I uh … walked down to the little bakery and picked up breakfast" she said, holding up the bag. Stefan's disappointment instantly faded but she had still seen it. "What's wrong?" she asked.

Stefan shook his head. "Nothing. I just woke up and you weren't here" he said.

Elena frowned. Had he thought she left? "I tried to hurry before you woke up" she told him. "I'm sorry if you thought I left" she said, setting the bag down and getting her coat off. She retrieved the bag once again and walked towards him, depositing it on the table before straddling his lap and wrapping her arms around his neck. "There's raspberry pastries and blueberry muffins in there" she said, knowing full well she was sounding seductive.

His eyes seemed to come alive with excitement. "That so" he said, placing his hands on her waist and resting his forehead against hers.

Elena bit her bottom lip and smiled with a small nod of her head. His voice, the way he was looking at her and the feeling of his hands on her waist was enough to work her into a frenzy if she wasn't careful. "Mmm hmm" she said, brushing her lips lightly across his. "So, since we have the day together" she said, pausing briefly when she felt his hands wander up her sides. "What do you propose we do with it?" she asked.

Stefan kissed her bottom lip sensually, playing with her already heightened senses. Then he smiled. "What would you like to do?" he asked, moving his hands around her back and playing with the material from her blouse.

"It's snowing outside" she mentioned, playing with the hairs on the nape of his neck. "I'd like to go out and enjoy the snow while it is here" she added. If living in Seattle had taught her anything, it was that the snow usually didn't stick around for long.

Stefan's eyes lit up with excitement that matched her own. "My little Southerner likes the snow?" he asked. Elena nodded her head, unable to contain the need to kiss him any longer.

"I used to ski back home" she said, taking a small breather and smiling at the memory of her and her family spending the weekend up at the mountain.

"You ever snowboard?" he asked her. She shook her head no. "Well, luckily for you, I happen to be an awesome snowboard instructor" he told her, not bothering to hide his arrogance that was seeping into their moment.

"You would show me?" Elena asked, excited and intrigued that he would be willing to take the time to help her learn.

Stefan smirked. "I'll show you anything you want to see" he said, winking at her mischievously. Then he leaned in even closer to her. "All you have to do is ask" he whispered.

"Stefan!" she chastised, feeling his hands under her shirt all of a sudden. "I'm serious about the snowboarding lessons" she said, getting him back on track.

"So am I" he whispered, scraping his teeth along her earlobe. "So, do you want to go to the mountain today?" he asked, kissing her cheek and pulling away to look at her.

She nodded her head. "Yes" she told him, still smiling. Stefan took a certain amount of pride in the fact that he had put that smile there. "I have my ski pants and jacket at my apartment" she informed him.

Stefan smiled. "And we can rent you a board" he added. "So you better get home and get your stuff" he said, attempting to push her off of him. He could hardly wait to spend the day with her snowboarding.

"Hold on" Elena coaxed softly, leaning in to kiss him. Stefan instantly forgot about the snowboarding trip when her lips were all over his. His hands snaked their way around her back again and he was just about ready to push her down on the couch until she stopped him. "I'm ready now" she laughed, holding him back.

Stefan looked at her confused. "Ready for what?" he asked.

Elena laughed at him this time. "Snowboarding" she reminded.

He smiled instantly. "Oh yeah" he said, standing up and pulling her with him. "I'll run you home so you can grab your stuff and then I'll be back to get you in an hour?" he asked.

"Sounds like a plan" she said, standing up on her tiptoes to kiss him lightly on the lips. "Let's hurry" she told him, grabbing the bag of baked goods and running for the door.

Stefan laughed at her, but grabbed his keys and followed her out. He caught up to her just as the elevator doors were about to close. "You look really happy" he said, leading against the wall next to her as they stood in the elevator.

Elena turned to him and smiled. "It's nice to be around someone who wants to spend time with you" she answered simply, bumping into his side before staring back ahead of her.

Even though she was happy, it kind of made his heart hurt to hear her admit that someone from her past never took the time to be with her. Because she was really an amazing person and Stefan knew that he would spend every day with her if he could.

Stefan reached his hand down and laced his fingers through hers. "Who wouldn't want to spend time with you?" he asked, smiling at her to lighten the mood. Elena smiled as well, for once letting herself not dwell on the fact that Gregory hadn't ever truly appreciated her. Not like Stefan did.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Elena smiled as she watched Stefan. She was sitting down on the snow with her legs out in front of her while Stefan was knelt down, strapping her bindings for her. Elena knew this first time snowboarding experience was going to be a disaster for her, but she was excited nonetheless. He looked up at her and matched her smile before finishing the last binding. "That should work" he said, standing up and offering his arms out to help her up. "How do they feel?" Stefan asked.

Elena continued to hold on to his hands to keep herself upright. "Different than skis" she told him, trying to get the hang of standing sideways on a board.

"I'm going to let you stand on your own now" he told her, having entirely more faith in her than she had in herself. She nodded though anyways and when he let go of her hands, she swayed forward, caught herself, and then swayed backwards, losing her balance and falling back. His arms were around her just before she hit the compact snow and she was pretty thankful for him doing that.

Elena laughed. "I guess I'm not a natural" she said, holding onto him once she was upright again.

"You'll get the hang of it" he said, giving her some encouragement.

"You really think so?" she asked.

Stefan nodded as he leaned in closer to her, letting go of her hands and grabbing onto her jacket. "I'll make sure of it" he smiled, kissing her slowly. When he leaned away from her slightly, he smiled again, seeing her eyes still closed as if she was still experiencing that kiss. "Ready to give it a try?" he asked.

Slowly, Elena nodded. "Okay" she said, bracing herself for what was sure to be a painful fall in the coming moments. She was surprised though when Stefan moved behind her, holding onto her waist. If he thought holding her like that was going to help her, he was sadly mistaking. She couldn't concentrate on what she was supposed to be doing.

Stefan felt her lean into him and he smiled. "You're supposed to be focusing on balancing" he said quietly into her ear. She barely heard him with her helmet on.

"I am focusing … just not on snowboarding" she replied. She heard him chuckle before his hands gripped her tighter.

"I'm going to hold onto you so you don't fall, okay?" he asked. She nodded eagerly and felt her board move under her. She swayed a bit, but he never let go. The hill she was going down was relatively flat and about 100 feet long.

When they were at the bottom finally, Elena smiled. Sure, she hadn't done it on her own, but she had done it with his help. "That was fun" she told him. "But, I would like to try by myself now" she said, bending down to undo her bindings.

"Okay" Stefan said, agreeing to have a hands-off approach. He was a gentleman though and carried her board back up the hill for her. He watched her get back into her bindings and roll around on the ground trying to get up.

"Okay I need help" she said, giving up and sighing, nearly out of breath from trying to get up so many times.

Stefan shook his head and smiled at her as he reached down and helped her up. "Remember to bend your knees and look ahead. Lean back and turn when you want to stop" he said, offering her tips.

Elena nodded, taking a deep breath. "I can do this" she said.

"I know you can" he told her, giving her a quick kiss for good luck.

Elena attempted to hop with her board to get herself going, but she really didn't go anywhere. "Stefan help" she said, feeling frustrated with herself already. Snowboarding wasn't supposed to be so hard.

Stefan gave her a small push and watched her slowly retreat down the hill. She was doing great too. Until she leaned back too far and wiped out. He jogged down the hill after her. "You okay?" he asked, standing over her.

"I think so" Elena said, staring straight up at him. She lifted her arms and let Stefan pull her up. "Again" she said. Stefan smiled with relief. She was a lot tougher than she looked.

It was two hours of falling before Elena made it down the hill all by herself. She was sure she was going to be sore the next day, but it was totally worth it. She was already planning to go on the chairlifts the next time he brought her. "You did amazing" Stefan said, his arm around her shoulders as they walked into the ski lodge.

Elena welcomed the warm air as they took their seat in a booth towards the back. "Am I going to hurt tomorrow morning?" she asked, rolling her shoulder slightly when she felt how stiff it was.

"Probably" Stefan said. "I'm going to get us something warm to drink" he said, standing up. He leaned over her and kissed the top of her head gently. "I'll give you a massage later" he told her.

Elena couldn't help but feel excited about that. She took her jacket off and spent the next few minutes looking out the window at the falling snow. It had really started coming down the last hour they were outside. Stefan returned a few minutes later with hot chocolate and soup, salads, and breadsticks. "It is so pretty here" Elena said, looking out the window again. To be honest, she didn't want to leave.

"We should stay the night here" he mentioned, watching her admire the view outside. Elena turned to look at him. "They have resort rooms."

Elena looked hesitant. It wasn't like they were at his place or her place. They were away. Together. "It would be our first time away together" she said, staring into his eyes.

Stefan picked up on her hesitancy. "It's up to you" he told her. "I'd be happy either way" he added.

Elena grabbed for her hot chocolate and looked back out the window. She was having fun and was with someone she really liked. She really had to reason to be so hesitant. "Okay" she answered. "I'd like to stay." She smiled and looked back at him. He seemed really happy with her answer.

Stefan smiled again and passed her the soup and a salad. "You start without me. I'll go and book us a room before they sell out" he told her.

"Let me pay for the room" Elena insisted. He had paid for her snowboard rental and had driven up there.

"What kind of boyfriend lets his girlfriend pay for the room?" he asked, backing away and smiling. "I'll be right back" he added before disappearing.

Elena sat there, speechless. Boyfriend. Was that what he was now? She felt her phone buzz and reached into her pocket the grab it. It was a text message from Stefan. "Don't look so surprised" she read. "You could do a lot worse."

Elena set her phone down and smiled. Yeah, she could definitely do a lot worse.

A/N: To be continued …