TWENTY-ONE

The faint sound of a steady beep filled her ears followed shortly after by the scent of cleaning products. It pulled her from the darkness and when she opened her eyes, she was greeted by unfamiliar stark white walls. A brief panic settled over her causing the steady beat to speed up and get a little louder. As she began to realize where she was, she also remembered the events that had brought her here. She swallowed thickly and pulled down the rough sheets enough to see her belly. She placed her hand over the barely there bump and calmed a little. For a moment, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath before letting it out slowly; the beep returning to it's steady rhythm.

"Elena? Thank God," came Damon's voice and Elena opened her eyes to see him coming through the door to her hospital room. He rushed to her side and grabbed her hand tightly in his. "You scared me."

"I scared me too," she whispered and tried to smile, but couldn't. Instead, she felt tears hit her cheeks and she closed her eyes again. "He's gone."

Damon went still at her words and frowned. "Stefan?"

She nodded and wiped her tears with the back of her hand. She looked at him and as she opened her mouth to explain, there was a knock at the door and Doctor Corbin walked in. "Elena, I'm so very happy to see you awake. You gave us all quite the scare."

Elena felt a surge of panic again at the sight of the doctor. "Is everything okay with the baby?"

Doctor Corbin nodded and moved to stand by her other side and placed his hand gently on her arm. "You must have been under quite a bit of stress to cause the kind of tear that you did. Luckily, you noticed it right away otherwise..." he let his voice trail off and gave them both a reassuring smile. "There was a tear in your uterine wall. Usually, it leads to a miscarriage, but we were able to repair it with a simple procedure. The baby is doing very well, but we would still like to keep you here for a few days to monitor the both of you, okay?"

Elena nodded as she tightened her grip on Damon's hand. "How will this affect the rest of my pregnancy?"

Doctor Corbin looked between the two of them and took a deep breath. "I will be putting you on bed rest for the duration of your pregnancy. I fear that stress might cause more damage and putting you on bed rest will eliminate the majority of the risks. I know it might sound like a lot considering you're only eighteen weeks, but it's for the best."

Elena looked at Damon and he smiled reassuringly back at her. "We'll see to it that she takes it easy," Damon said.

Doctor Corbin nodded and patted her arm again. "I'll be back to check up on you soon," he said and left the room, closing the door gently behind him.

Elena closed her eyes again as she tried to fight back the tears that kept pouring from the corners of her eyes. Damon moved to lay at her side so that he could wrap his arms around her. She clung to his shirt as she buried her face into his shirt. Damon wasn't sure how to go about bringing up the subject of Stefan again without upsetting her further, so he said nothing. He figured if she wanted to talk about it, she would bring it up herself.

After a long bout of silence, Elena was able to get herself under control and she began talking about what had happened at the house. "I knew something was wrong the closer I got to the house. The moment I got there, I opened the garage to find that his car was gone. I called out for him, but he never answered. I tried calling his phone, but it went straight to voicemail each time. When I saw the letter on the bar, I just knew. I went upstairs only to find that all of his clothes were gone and so were some of the more important things from his office."

"What letter?"

Elena bit her lip nervously, trying to judge how mad he would be at her for keeping this sort of thing from him. "I had a paternity test done," she admitted and held her breath as she waited for an outburst of anger from him.

"When?" he asked, his voice a little stiffer than usual.

"When I was nine weeks along."

"Why?"

She knew exactly what he meant by that question and she was prepared to answer him as honestly as she could. "I did it because I wanted solid proof. I wanted to confirm what I already knew; that the baby was yours and not Stefan's." She was silent a moment as she listened to his heartbeat. "I don't know if I would have opened it or not. Not knowing was driving me just as insane as actually knowing would have."

Damon stared at her before looking up at the ceiling. "Stefan left because of the letter."

"More likely due to the results," she said quietly and felt her lips twitch as Damon's heart skipped a beat. She pushed herself up just enough so that she could see his face. "You are the father. Officially."

Damon reached down and cupped one side of her face, a big smile taking hold of his lips. After a long moment, Elena returned her head to his chest and let her eyes close. "I have to ask, if you had seen the results before Stefan; before you and I had had it out, would have chosen differently?"

"No," Elena replied without hesitating. "Like I said earlier, it's always been you. I just wish it had been revealed a little differently."

"Me too," Damon muttered and closed his eyes. "Me too."

"Will you stay here tonight?"

"Like I would rather be anywhere else," he scoffed and tightened his hold. "Get some rest Elena, you'll be out of here soon enough."

While the thought of leaving made Elena panic slightly, she nodded and tried to let the events of the previous hours fade to the background so that she could wake to another day where things could start fresh.

After spending three nights in the hospital, Elena was finally being released. She signed her discharge papers and was wheeled outside by a nurse as Damon pulled his car up to the door. "Thank you," she said as the nurse took the wheelchair away when Damon helped her into the passenger seat. Her lower body was still a little sore from the procedure, but she was more than happy to be slightly uncomfortable if it meant getting to leave the hospital. She smiled at Damon as he got behind the wheel, but the moment he started driving, Elena felt that familiar panic at the prospect of going home. "Pull over somewhere," she said sternly.

Damon pulled away from the entrance and into the nearest parking lot. "What's wrong? Do we need to go back inside?"

"No," she answered, shaking her head. "It's just..." She took a deep breath and turned her head to look at him. "I don't think I can go to the house."

"Elena-"

"I know Stefan's still gone, but either way, if he comes back-"

"When."

"If," Elena corrected. "He's not coming back Damon. Not for a little bit anyway. I'm sure Tyler filled him in on what's happening, but if he were going to come, don't you think he would be here already?" Elena took his silence as a yes and continued. "I just can't stomach the idea of sitting there, unable to do anything for myself wondering if he's going to return, because that will cause stress and stress-"

Damon reached over and took both of her hands in his. "Elena, listen to me. No one said you have to go back to your house. I can take you anywhere, but wherever you go, you're going to have to stay until the baby comes."

"I know."

"I can take you to Caroline's or any of your parent's houses, but you have to make a decision now. Someone will go get your things for you; whatever you need."

Elena gave him a faint smile as she stared into his pleading blue eyes. "Okay."

"You can even stay with me if you want. I know it's a little soon, but..."

Elena couldn't keep her smile from widening and tears gathered in her eyes. The thought of him being willing to take care of her through all of this was more than she could have asked for. He gave her a worried look and she laughed nervously. "Are you sure about this?"

"What's not to be sure of?" he countered. "That's my kid in there and I'm in love with you. Honestly, I would be a little offended if you went anywhere else."

Elena knew he was kidding for most part, but she could still hear a hint of seriousness in his voice. "I can have Caroline get my things and bring them over later tonight."

"You can even have the other bedroom all to yourself if you want."

"Why? We both know we'll end up sleeping next to each other anyway."

Damon grinned. "I was hoping you would say that." With that, he started driving towards his condo, her hand still in his.

While they were both excited to start their life together, neither one of them was overlooking the fact that Stefan's heart had been broken by them. As much as it bothered both of them that he had given her the cold shoulder when something of this nature had happened, they were determined to give him space and let him come around on his own. There was nothing Elena could say or do to change the past and there was no use dwelling on it now when the future of her child rested in her ability to stay as stress free as possible.

Damon opened the door to Caroline who stormed past him after a deadly stare. "Elena's things are in the car. Where is she?" she asked as she held out her key and handed it to him.

"Down the hall, the door's open, you'll see her," he replied, figuring it was best not to say anything else. He shook his head as she made her way to the bedroom and left the condo to give them some time to talk.

"What the hell is going on? First you're in the hospital because you almost lost the baby and now you're staying here with Damon because Stefan left; all of which I found out from your brother. Start talking," Caroline demanded as she sat cross legged on the edge of the bed, facing Elena.

Elena pushed herself up a little more so that she was comfortable. She knew Caroline wasn't going anywhere until she had every detail. "Did you bring the letter on the bar that I asked for?" she asked, knowing that she would have looked at it too.

"Yes. How in the world is it possible for Damon to be the father of your child? You didn't meet him until after the wedding."

Elena shook her head slightly. "A week before the wedding, I left Stefan. Or, at least that's what I was trying to do. I was tired of feeling like the walls were closing in around me so I had to get out. I just drove and when I stopped, I came to this little bar. I figured I would have a few drinks and just try to sort things out. Well, this guy came over and started talking to me," she said with a light smile. "He prevented a group of college guys chatting me up. We talked, drank, and played pool all night. We told each other our first names, but that was it. At the end of the night, the bartender called us a cab and since his place was closer, we went there first. We said goodbye and right as the cabbie started to drive, I made him stop and I ran after the guy from the bar."

Caroline's eyes went wide. "I'm shocked."

"Me too," Elena replied. "I don't know how to explain it, but the thought of letting him go without being with him was painful. His kiss, his touch; everything about that night was ten times better than anything I've experienced before. It was like we were connected on a level I didn't even know existed."

"But you came back?" Caroline said in a quiet voice.

Elena nodded. "I told him that if it were meant to be, we would run into each other again without knowing each other's last names or exchanging phone numbers. He told me that he believed in fate more than anyone else and that we would be running into each other again." She shrugged and looked at her hands as they absentmindedly played with the blanket draped across her lap. "I was scared; scared that I had found my soulmate, but I just couldn't leave Stefan because of some great one night stand."

"So you came back," Caroline repeated with a sigh.

"Six weeks later, I find out that I'm pregnant and just as Stefan finds out, his long lost brother shows up and turns out to be my one night stand. I was horrified at first, afraid that he would say something or that I would, but that never happened. Damon and I started to get to know each other then and one thing led to another and... I was on my way home to tell Stefan about us that night, but he had already found the letter and was gone by the time I got home." She waited a moment or too before she looked up at her friend, hoping that the blonde wasn't too disappointed. "I love him Caroline. I know what I did was heartless and cruel, but I never meant for it to happen this way."

Caroline stared at Elena as she began to fall apart. Without hesitation, she moved to sit beside her friend and wrapped her arms around Elena's shoulders. "Listen to me and listen good. You are one of the best people I know. You're too good sometimes. You have spent the majority of your life making sure that others are happy and I've watched you sacrifice your own happiness just to make it happen. I honestly believe that if you had stayed with Stefan, you would have been miserable. Yes, you two were a pretty awesome couple, but if you don't feel for him what you feel for someone else; someone you haven't known as long, you would have come to resent both yourself and Stefan."

"He hates me."

"Probably." Caroline wasn't going to sugarcoat anything. "But give him time. He called Tyler last night and said he's back in New York. He didn't say anything else, but at least he's talking to someone. I'm sure if he knew..."

"If he knew he would feel guilty and then I would feel even more guilty than I already to," Elena whispered.

Caroline patted her shoulder and pulled back a little. "Hey, look at me. Stefan will come around, but who knows when that will be."

"I know."

"Will you promise me something?" she asked. When Elena nodded, Caroline continued. "I want you to promise me that you will keep your head up and enjoy the rest of your pregnancy and the fact that Damon is here for you. I know it's not exactly an ideal situation, but..."

"I promise," Elena said and turned her head as she heard the front door open.

"Damon brought your stuff in from the car. I should probably go now, you need to rest. Call me if you need anything okay?"

"I will. Thanks, Care."

"I love you," she said before dropping a kiss on Elena's cheek.

"Love you too," Elena replied as Caroline walked away.

In the living room, Caroline stopped in front of Damon, folding her arms across her chest. "Look, Caroline, I'm really not in the mood to argue with you about anything."

"I don't want to argue; I want to thank you."

"Thank me? For what?"

"Elena never does anything for herself. She always puts other people's happiness and wants before her own. The fact that you were the one to get her to chose you even though she would have to break Stefan's heart is huge. It's going to be a long, messy road for the three of you, so don't you walk away from her."

"I wouldn't. Even if you held a gun to my head."

Caroline chuckled and held her hand out for her keys. "Alright, this is where I take my leave then. Oh, and tell Elena I won't say a word to anyone about this until she's ready for anyone to know."

"Thank you," Damon said as he opened the door for her. He waved as she walked out and then he shut the door in her wake. He then made his way to the bedroom where Elena was already lying on her side with the comforter pulled around her. "All of your stuff is in the living room."

"It can wait until tomorrow," she mumbled.

Damon nodded and crawled into bed beside her. He wrapped his arms around her and placed a kiss on her shoulder while he rested his hands on his stomach. Just as he was about to say something about Caroline's visit, he and Elena both jumped. "What the hell was that?" he asked.

"I think that's the baby kicking," Elena mused.

"That was one hell of a kick."

Elena nodded and jumped as she experienced another movement. "I read somewhere that babies tend to get restless right before the mother goes to sleep," she said, shifting to lie on her back. "Thanks kid," she replied sarcastically.

Damon smiled and leaned in to kiss her cheek. He rubbed her stomach in the hopes that the baby would move again. Instead, it seemed to calm both mother and child because the next thing he knew, they were both still. He smiled more and closed his eyes, letting sleep take him as well.