So, the final chapter is here! In honor of TVD Friday *sighs* can't believe there's no more Damon on my screen. I want to thank all of you who took the time to read and review this story; your words always brighten my day. I also want to thank Lorena because she's been an amazing beta for this story.

I really hope you enjoy this chapter and please wait for the epilogue; I'll manage to update it in a few days.

It's been one hell of a ride guys and it's been my pleasure to share it with all of you.

Love,

Sam

"Maybe one day we'll find that place where you and I could be together. And we'll catch our dreams with the waves of change. So smile for me one last time and believe that we'll meet again. Until then, I'll be missing you"

R.M Drake

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Elena's hands were shaking. It was a hot morning in Atlanta and she could feel the sweat trailing down her back while she sat in the car with her back pressed into the seat. The fabric of her pale pink dress felt too tight against her skin and she was sure it would rob her of her breath at any minute.

"Just breathe" Damon whispered, his voice echoing in the silent car as he extended his hand and gripped both of hers between his, forcing them to stop shaking. "You just need to breathe" He was trying to be the picture of calmness but Elena knew him too well to know he was as anxious as her.

After a whole week of debating on what they were supposed to do they decided to drive to Georgia and go to the direction Caroline and Stefan had told them was the house of their daughter, her blonde friend had managed to contact Sister Evelyn who told them she managed the adoption personally because she wanted only the best family for Elena's daughter.

They had no plan in mind and no idea of what they were going to say to their child's family but they guessed no one really knew what to do in a situation like this.

"Tell me again" She said, her voice wobbling with emotion.

"Her name is not listed but her adoptive parent's are" Damon spoke calmly "A renowned college history teacher named Alaric Saltzman and a stay at home mom named Jenna Summers. They have another younger child, also adopted and they are a catholic family"

"They seem like good people right?" Elena asked softly as she looked at the house. It was located in one of the best neighborhoods in Atlanta and was a big two story Victorian house with white walls and a big yard, and they were currently parked in front of it

"From what it says here, yes. They are a respected family from the community, that's why Sister Evelyn chose them. Everyone only has nice things to say about them"

Elena nodded; she had to believe they were good people. She had to believe that her daughter had the life she would never be able to give her before and that her childhood had been a happy one.

"You want to go and knock?" Damon told her in a whisper, his hand gripping hers more tightly.

"Just a minute more" Elena took a small deep breath as he had told her to, trying to calm her racing heart. She was ten seconds from telling him she was ready when the front door opened and a small child of around five years came out running, his hair was sandy blond and he had a big toothy grin on his face.

"Elena…" Damon choked out as a little girl came out of the house chasing the boy. Her hair was long, straight and dark as the night. She had a little dimple on her left cheek and the brightest blue eyes framed by thick lashes. Neither of them needed to look twice to know who she was.

"Oh my God" Elena whispered as she covered her mouth with one of her hands, her eyes glistening with tears. There were no words in the English language that could describe what she was feeling after seeing her little one for the first time in so long. If she closed her eyes she could still remember that day when she had held her against her chest and breathed in her baby scent.

But she was no longer that baby and she was no longer hers. Elena's heart broke all over again as she stared at the elder blonde man and petite woman walking out of the house, he took the girl's body into his big arms and swung her around as she laughed without a care in the world. The woman, Jenna, looked at them adoringly before turning her attention to the little boy running towards them. Soon, they all started chasing each other through the yard while they laughed joyously.

"She looks like me" Damon said in a broken sob and Elena could no longer contain her own tears. She broke down right there as a happy family played obliviously in front of them.

Damon held her as his own tears mixed with hers, she clung to him as a pain like never before sliced through her. In that moment she hated her mother more than ever, she hated her for robbing her of the chance of watching her child grow. She hated the world and the injustices it brought. She hated people's prejudice and judgement and the pain and loneliness that led her to the biggest mistake of her life.

Elena felt like she was dying, it was like losing her baby all over again but this time Damon was here to comfort her.

"She looks happy" She said between sobs, her face was buried against his chest and he traced small patterns on her back.

"Yes, she does" He said softly as he watched the scene in front of him; the one thing he had ever wanted but someone had taken away from him.

Elena turned her face around and stared at the family playing in front of them, she could hear her daughter's giggles as her mom tickled her on the grass, her eyes shining with pure happiness. Elena's head still rested on Damon's chest as a realization finally dawned on her "We can't do this to her"

"I know" He answered with another sob climbing up his throat.

They both realized in that moment that the greatest act of love you can do for someone is to allow them to be happy even when your heart is breaking. That the happiness of their daughter meant more to them than their own, that they couldn't be selfish and rob her of the family and the life she had only known.

That because they loved her, they had to let her go and be happy, even if it wasn't with them.

"She is so beautiful" Damon whispered in awe as he watched his daughter with rapt attention.

"She is" Elena breathed deeply and moved to rest fully in her seat again "We should go"

"Just one more minute" He whispered as his hands now gripped the steering wheel, silent tears streaming down his cheeks. They stayed for a few minutes more watching the lovely scene in front of them before he started the engine and took them away from the one perfect thing they had done together.

As they drove away Elena gripped the small baby bracelet that had been resting on her lap and prayed to the Virgin, asking her to always protect and care for her daughter like she couldn't do herself.

When they arrived back to North Carolina after way too many hours in the car their mood still hadn't improved, they had remained silent almost the entire time, both of them mourning in their own way and yet his hand never released hers.

Caroline and Stefan were both waiting for them when they returned to the house, they had wanted to come and offer moral support in case things didn't work out and they needed only one glimpse of their defeated faces to know that had been the case.

Elena and Damon shared a look in the foyer and both understood that they needed time to process everything so he went to his home office with Stefan while she headed into the bedroom with Caroline.

"Elena… what happened?" The blonde girl asked in an unsure voice when they reached the room and Elena still hadn't uttered a word.

"She has a life Caroline, she is happy" Elena answered sadly "You should have seen her little face lit up with delight. She is so beautiful" A small smile tugged at her lips as a faraway look appeared in her eyes "I'm glad she's happy"

"But you can't tear her world down" Her friend whispered

"Exactly" Elena lay down on the bed with her hands still gripping the small bracelet, her knees curled next to her chest as tears gathered in her eyes once again "One would think I shouldn't have any tears left" She said more to herself than to her friend who didn't answer and instead stroked her hair softly while the tears fell freely down her cheeks.

Elena had thought about her daughter many times over the years, she had always wondered how she looked like, who were her parents. It was the most torturous feeling in the world, walking down the street thinking she could be anywhere, wondering if they had already met or crossed ways. It was walking and thinking that she could be any little girl in her path and now she knew where she was and who her parents were. She knew where her baby girl was but could do nothing to keep her, she had to give her up once again and the feeling was heart shattering.

A few minutes afterwards the bedroom door opened once again and Lizzie walked in with a sad expression on her face, without saying anything she removed her shoes and climbed into the bed next to her, she placed a hand on Elena's cheek and whispered "I'm so sorry auntie Ellie" Elena sucked in a breath as she stared at the face of her niece "I'm sorry you lost your daughter"

Elena broke down in full sobs as Lizzie hugged her, she could hear Caroline sniffing as well and that only made her cry harder. "But she knows you love her and one day you'll met each other again" Lizzie whispered against Elena's ear "You'll see" she gripped her niece's little body tightly as she cried and let all the pain and shame wash away.

On another side of the house Damon was breaking down as well; he was trashing his home office as he let the tears fall and the guilt and pain of the past few years finally surface. "She was so close, so close Stefan"

"I know brother" Stefan answered simply, he was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed on top of his chest. He knew there was no use in stopping Damon; he had to let him work out of all of those feelings inside. "And I wanted her, I wanted her so badly" He kicked a chair and then let himself fall back into the couch placed against the wall

"But she was happy…"

"How could I tear down her world like that?" Damon asked "She's just a kid and she's happy, she deserves to be happy" He buried his face between his hands and started crying freely "She is my daughter, Stefan, and she is so perfect"

Stefan moved towards the couch and sat next to him "I'm sorry, Damon"

"The only one thing I ever did, the most precious thing I ever did" He was full on sobbing now, his brother hugged him and moved him until his head was resting on his lap "And they took her away from us, she is gone"

"It's going to be all right Damon" Stefan rubbed his brother's back as he cried freely, just like he had done with him so many times before when they're children. Stefan had always been the one who needed comfort, the one in need of something; Damon always made himself appear strong and tough but now he was truly breaking down.

"It hurts too much" Damon cried. Seeing her had been an eye opener to him, it had made everything so much more real to him. He had a daughter, someone out there who resembled him and carried a part of him. Someone he wanted to hold and kiss goodnight, who he wanted to sing to and rock to sleep.

"What song is that daddy?" She would ask

"It's an old Italian lullaby" He would answer softly while stroking her dark hair.

"And how do you know it?" She would tell him and look at him with curious eyes

"Because your grandmother sang it to us every night" He would answer and kiss her on the forehead before continuing the song while Elena stood in the doorway looking at them with adoring eyes.

But instead he would go to sleep every night knowing another man was singing lullabies to his daughter, or at least he hoped he was and praying to God to be good to her and always keep her safe and happy.

But he would always be her father, even if she didn't know about it. She was his daughter and nothing in the world could change that fact, she was a part of him and a part of Elena and she would always be.

"I'm here for you Damon, always" Stefan kept murmuring soft words while he cried and let all the pain and guilt wash away, freeing himself as much as he could of everything he had carried over the years.

Everything seemed to be a little bit better the next day, the image of their daughter running around was going to be in their memories forever but they had accepted there was nothing they could do but keep going with their lives with the hope that one day destiny could find a way to bring them back together. Stefan, Caroline and Lizzie had been so helpful, having them around eased something for Damon and Elena; being surrounded by the people who love you is always a good way to start healing.

They were currently gathered on Damon's dining table. Caroline had suggested that all of them have a big dinner like a family and she, Lizzie and Elena had spent the entire morning cooking; something Elena was incredible grateful for because it helped her keep her mind off things she didn't want to think about.

"This looks amazing" Stefan said in appreciation while he looked at the fancy arrangement the girls had made with the food on the table.

"Just wait until you taste it" Damon told his brother while he winked at Elena, there was no secret that he had fallen in love with her cooking over the last few days.

"We should say grace before we start" Caroline whispered once they were all seated at the table. Stefan and Damon exchanged a funny look; they generally never had dinner like this so they weren't used to it.

"I want to say it" Lizzie said excitedly

"Go ahead sweetie" Elena smiled at Lizzie.

The little girl placed her hands together in front of her, followed by everyone on the table and started talking with a smile on her face "Dear God, I want to thank you because we are all here together and we are healthy, we also want to thank you for all the food you gave us and because auntie Ellie did most of the cooking and not mommy"

"Hey!" Caroline said, pretending to be offended while the rest of the table couldn't help but chuckle at the kid's words

"I also want to say thank you because mommy's boyfriend is really cute and very kind" Lizzie looked at Stefan with a toothy grin and he returned it wholeheartedly "And finally I want to say thank you because Auntie Ellie chose Damon, the Prince, and not Liam who had a funny face. Amen"

"Lizzie!" Elena chuckled

"I wouldn't have said it better" Damon said with a smirk before ruffling Lizzie's hair and winking at Elena.

"I have no idea where she got that personality" Caroline said with a small smile before starting to serve food on her plate.

"Really?" Stefan looked at her with a raised eye brow and more love anyone could ever ask for "I'll remind you next time you start being cheeky" Caroline smiled brightly at him before focusing back on her food.

"What does cheeky mean?" Lizzie asked Stefan who started explaining it to her with as much patience and adoration a father can have with his child. Elena realized in that moment that Lizzie was becoming Stefan's child like her own daughter had become those people's daughter.

Damon caught her eye and smiled sadly at her before returning his attention back to the other three people in the table. As the minutes went by they ate and laughed, they shared stories and told jokes and Damon and Elena understood that the pain of losing their daughter was never going to go away but with time it was going to heal. They realized that they had a family here with thess people and that they were going to make it keep growing.

They accepted the fact that life could be cruel and hard and painful but that it could also be beautiful and filled with wonderful moments. When his lapis lazuli eyes met hers across the table once again Elena knew that everything was going to be okay because he was here with her and together they would find a way to make it work. Life had thrown them the worse cards someone could get but somehow amidst all the chaos they had found their way back to each other.

And that was the only hope she needed.

Later that night once their guests were soundlessly sleeping in their bedrooms Damon and Elena were sitting on the porch steps watching the wind rustling the trees. She was one step below him and was resting between his legs while he caressed her hair softly.

They were in complete silence with only the night sounds accompanying them "What are you thinking about?" He asked after a while

"I'm praying" She whispered "I'm praying for her and for us" Damon felt his throat clogging with emotion so he remained in silence, his arms tightening around her slender frame, his face buried in her hair "What are we going to do?" Elena asked after a few more silent minutes.

"About what?" He answered in confusion

"About everything" She sighed and leaned back further so she could stare into his face, her head resting in the crook of his elbows "I have a job back in NYC and you have a life here"

"I know" He nodded "And truth be told Elena, I have no idea of how are we going to do this but I know that I wouldn't want to do it with anyone else" She smiled at his words "We might not have all the answers but look at the long road we've travelled"

"It's pretty epic right?"

"Of course it is. You and me? We are epic doll" He dropped his head until he was nuzzling her nose with his "If everything we went through wasn't able to stop us neither will this. The worst case scenario will be dealing with a bit of distance"

"That's not that bad right?"

"No, not at all"

She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the night air caressing her skin, the feeling of his arms around her and his smell surrounding her. There were times back when she was alone and closed her eyes and could picture him with her, right now she was almost afraid to open them and realize it had all been a dream, Elena didn't know if she was going to ever lose that fear.

"There were nights when I truly thought I was never going to find you" Damon told her in a wobbly voice "I lay in bed paralyzed with fear just because of that thought"

"But you did find me" She told him reassuringly

"Dance with me?" He whispered and she opened her eyes to find him staring at her with stars in his baby blues.

"What?"

"I owe you ten years of dances on the porch" He told her and her eyes filled with tears as a pressure appeared in her chest, her mind drifting back to a conversation they had had when they were still too young to know about the cruelness of the world "You promised you were going to dance with me"

"I did"

"So let's dance"

"There's no music"

"There's always music" He stood up and extended his hand to help her onto her feet. Elena went into his arms as he started humming 'I wanna hold your hand' and they swayed to the soft sound of his voice.

She placed her head on his chest and marveled at the vibrations it did as he hummed. Damon was really here and this wasn't a dream "I love you darling" She whispered in the darkness of the night.

"I love you too doll" He told her "You'll always be my girl"

Elena closed her eyes as they kept swaying to the sound of his hum, while the stars shinned in the sky and the wind rustled the trees. They danced as they should have done for the last ten years and as they would do for many for years to come.

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THE END

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