I've had such a ridiculously productive day I thought I'd give you an update to make myself feel that much more accomplished. It's quite a long one so I hope you enjoy it

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It wasn't until we were pulling up outside the large-looking log cabin on Friday evening that I found out exactly who was joining us on this little weekend away. Having been such a last minute thing, no-one really knew until we got here as people asked their friends and the group gradually grew. So there were the obvious people like Caroline and Klaus, Matt and Rebekah, Bonnie and Kol, me and Damon, Stefan, Tyler…and then, joy of joys…Mason Lockwood. Pulling up in Damon's Camaro, both of us in a great mood after my brilliant road trip mix-tapes and stomach hurting from laughing so much over the past hour, I can't say my boyfriend was too pleased to see his sort-of non-friend getting out of Matt's pick-up. And behind him, no less, was his friend Connor Jordan.

What could you do?

Caroline told us the master bedroom was for her and Klaus but apart from that it was up to us to bag our own. I wasn't too bothered to tell the truth but I'd prefer to sleep in a bed than the sofa for the next few nights so I admit I was relieved to find an empty one overlooking the lake. She'd said there were five so the chances weren't slim, but I dumped my bags on the double bed just in case, spinning around as I heard Damon enter the doorway, "Ta da. This good enough to satisfy your luxurious taste?" I teased, holding out my arms as he dropped his bag in a chair, pushing closed the door and barely sparing the room a glance as he walked towards me. Laughing at the predatory look in his eyes and the smile pulling at the corner of his mouth, I had very little warning as he promptly lifted me up, my legs wrapping around his waist and his mouth landing on mine. Feeling him spin us around, I let out a squeal as he fell backwards onto the bed, gripping his shoulders as he laughed, pushing himself up onto his elbows when I pulled away for laughter.

"I'm sure you'll do."

Taking a second to understand what he meant, I feigned insult, pushing his shoulder but only earning more laughter, "Asshole, I meant the room."

He shrugged, glancing around, "It's alright, the beds tiny."

"It's a double."

"And you're like a little wildcat, my bed's not big enough-"

Slapping my hand over his mouth to cut him off, he only laughed as I blushed red, "Damon!"

"Just saying!"

"You're mean"

"Oh if anything it's a compliment." He teased gently, sitting up and tilting his head up slightly to press a kiss to my cheek, "The rooms fine, you're perfect, how do you feel about having a 'nap' before going back down. That was a long drive."

Smiling at the obvious double-meaning, I nodded, rolling off him and standing up again, "Sure, I think I heard Matt saying something about having pizza in his truck so dinner shouldn't be long." I said as he shifted to lie with his head on the pillows, letting out a tired sigh and closing his eyes. I couldn't help but smile, rolling my eyes in amusement before picking up my bag to put it on a side chair, opening it up and looking through it for my wash bag. Finding the little packet of painkillers inside and a bottle of water, I swallowed two back and was just about to put them away again when his voice cut through the silence.

"You've still got a headache?"

Looking up, I gave a little shrug as I kicked off my shoes and dropped my coat on the chair before heading back to the bed and dropping down beside him. "It's definitely a persistent one." I sighed jokingly but his frown only deepened, trying to ignore the feel of his gaze on the side of my face.

"Persistent's the word, you've had it all week." I couldn't mistake the concern in his voice but the tiredness that just hit me as I lay down was too much to resist. So I just rolled onto my side and snuggled into his side, sure that the pills would kick in soon and numb the throbbing in my temple, "Maybe you should go see your doctor…"

Closing my eyes, I shook my head, my hand sliding up to rest on his chest in a sort of calming motion, letting out a heavy sigh, "No, it's fine don't worry about it." He didn't say anything but I honestly didn't want to talk about it now, wanting nothing more than to sleep. Peering up at him through my lashes, I pressed a kiss to his shoulder in an attempt to gain his attention, "You mind if we wait a few hours to christen the bed? I'm a little tired."

He may be concerned (that's what his eyes told me at least), but he couldn't fight the smirk at my question, letting out a quiet laugh as he rolled onto his side to face me, arms sliding around my waist to hug me closer, "Sure Els, I understand, your stamina isn't quite there yet-"

Cutting him off with a not-so-light thump to his sternum, all I got was laughter but I couldn't be bothered to argue, instead just burying my face in his chest and enjoying the feel of being utterly surrounded by him, "I lasted longer than you on Tuesday."

"Oh yeah that one time-"

"-Shut up.

Feeling his silent laughter, I couldn't help but smile myself, "Go to sleep Els, I'll challenge you to prove your point in the morning." I would've nodded in agreement, perhaps telling him he didn't stand a chance in proving me wrong…but I was already asleep, naturally.

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"Oh how kind of you two to join us! We were about to send out a bloody search party."

With a guilty smile, I felt Damon's grip tighten on my hand as we made our way into the busy kitchen of the lake house, seeing the clock above the stove read about a quarter past midday…oops. "What can I say?" He began dryly, that familiar nonchalant air about him as we were surrounded by our friends, "We were preoccupied."

Eyes widening a little, I aimed a gentle punch to his stomach while trying not to blush, giving him a look but finding his smile contagious, "I'm sure," Caroline said dryly with a knowing look in her eyes, "We were just discussing what to do today." She informed us as Damon let go of my hand to make his way towards the kettle, "Which is basically whatever you want to do. The weathers meant to be pretty good this weekend-"

"-Discounting the thunderstorm tonight." Rebekah cut in.

"Yeah, aside from that. Anyway, there are hundreds of DVD's in the cupboard as well as a PlayStation though it's pretty old, there are bikes in the garage, a few old rowing boats, paths through the woods, a little town about twenty minutes' drive away that may or may not still have a café in it…I'm sure we'll all find something to do."

.

The weather was cold. Sure it was sunny and the sky was clear and blue but the lack of clouds only made the air colder. Did that stop us from going outside? No, sir, it did not. Sure some of the others decided to spend the day indoors watching films and the like but Damon, Klaus, Caroline and I all headed out. Midway through a conversation about having a fire later on and my suggestion of going into town to buy some firewood, I suddenly realised that such a thing was no less than an insult to the two boys as they bristled and squared their shoulders, flexing muscles and all. The threat to their masculinity had them setting out on a mission for firewood. Armed with two axes, they disappeared off into the woods…never to be seen again. Or so we joked.

In near hysterics at our boyfriends' antics, Caroline and I made our way down the little jetty. Sitting down at the end, I couldn't help but smile in admiration for the picturesque seen before us. The lake was pretty big, with a small island in the middle and the water so still it reflected the blue sky above where the moon was still visible way above us, even in the middle of the day. It looked like a scene from a postcard; a million miles away from my life in New York. God…I barely even remembered New York.

"This is incredible Care, thanks so much for inviting us."

She made a noise, waving me off, "Don't mention it, I love having you guys here."

How did I manage to make such great friends? Not that my old friends weren't good…they were, but they'd been my friends all my life; they didn't really have any choice about it. How had I managed to make such close friends in only a few months? Luck…pure luck. I was a pretty lucky girl in some cases, minus the cancer thing. "You know I was telling you about my family's island…"

She laughed, nodding, "Oh yeah, I almost forgot the fact that you own an island."

Smirking at her tone, I tried not to be embarrassed by the fact, "It's not actually mine but whatever. I was thinking about maybe doing something in the summer…if I haven't been disowned by then. Maybe taking all you guys down there for a week or two." She let out a noise like a screech and I laughed, carrying on before she exploded, "My old friends too; so you get to meet them all."

"OH MY GOD YES PLEASE!" She practically screamed, bouncing up and down where she sat so violently I was worried she might fall into the cold water.

"That a yes?"

"Elena Gilbert I will love you forever! Please, please, please do that! Oh my god it'd be incredible! Ah, the Bahamas…oh my god."

Unable to hold in my laughter, I nodded, "I'll take that as a yes then."

"I cannot believe you'd do that! Oh my days it'll be the most amazing thing ever. Thank you!"

Giving a little shrug, I pulled my knees up to my chest to untie my laces, taking off the converses and ankle socks, "It's the least I could do, you guys have been incredible."

"Hardly"

"No, really…I really wasn't expecting to make friends when I moved here but you were all so kind. I didn't even want to move here but you made me feel so at home…so thank you." I told her honestly, setting my shoes by my side and glancing over the edge of the jetty to see how far the water was below me. About a few feet…

She was quiet for a moment but there was a gentle smile on her face, "Why did you move here Lena…if you didn't want to. I know you said you had some health issues but…" She faded off and I didn't say anything for a second, not sure what to say, "I mean, if you don't want to tell me that's fine-"

"-No…no I do, I just," Stopping for a moment, I let out a sigh, "I had cancer."

She froze…going completely still as she stared at me, her mouth hanging slightly open. I had said it quite casually… "Oh my-…what- how- when?!"

Fighting a smile at her shock, I let out a sigh before answering, "A few months before moving here; it all happened pretty fast to be honest. My parents sent me here for some 'fresh air'…really they just didn't want to have to deal with it."

"Oh my god that's awful…" She looked so shocked I almost felt bad, such sympathy in her eyes I didn't quite know what to say, "But you're okay now, right? It's all gone…"

Nodding, I shooed away my internal fears of a recurrence, "Yeah, I got the all-clear and I have check-up's all the time. It's gone, but that's just the reason I moved here." I said, quickly assuring her that I was fine, "To be honest I could've moved back weeks ago…"

"Why haven't you?" Looking over at her, I gave her look and realisation crossed her face; a smile growing there, "Damon…"

"Not just Damon." I smiled, nudging her shoulder with mine, "I prefer it here…I mean, I had amazing friends in the city and I still do…but I guess I'm just not as much of a city girl as I thought I was. I like Mystic Falls, I love all you guys, I lo-like being with Damon" Quick save, oh shit she saw it…carry on. "I prefer it here to the city-"

"-You love Damon"

It was more of a statement than a question; a shocked look on her face as she stared at me but it was a pleased one…the shadow of a smile there made that clear, "Caro-"

"Oh my god, I knew it…you're in love with him."

Dammit, "Don't be ridiculous Care, we've only been together a week!"

"Officially, you've been together a lot longer than that. You love him!"

Her excitement growing with volume, I glanced behind us to make sure there was no-one within hearing distance before rushing on, "I don't-…I don't know. I really like him…really, really like him but I'm not an idiot, it hasn't been nearly long enough to use the 'L' word. I doubt he would say that and I'm not going to say it first and risk what we have because…yes, I love being with him."

"He loves you."

Sigh, "No he doesn't"

"Yes he does

"No he-" Cutting myself off as I realised we were getting into one of those arguments, I let out an amused sigh, "Drop if Forbes, it's too soon."

"Urgh, whatever, I don't think so." She relented with an eye roll, "But you better tell me the second you say it!"

"Of course I will." I smiled, shuffling forward a little on the rough wood to lower my feet down to the water. The thin material of the elephant trousers I'd bought in Thailand last year did nothing to protect me from the cold, but holy crap the water was like ice! "Bloody hell it's cold!"

"Well obviously!"

Biting my lip, I winced as I dipped my feet in once again, feeling the pins-and-needle-like feeling spread beneath my skin but, with a few deep breaths, I got used to it, "Is it bad that I still want to swim?"

She scoffed, glancing down at my feet, "You're insane. You'll get bloody hypothermia!"

"I once went skiing with my friends and we were playing truth or dare one night…really it was drink or dare actually. Anyway, my friend Jake and I were dared to go sledging in just our swimsuits. Obviously we did it…and jumped straight back into the hot tub because I've never been so cold in my life."

She made an 'ah' face, shivering at the idea of it and I couldn't help but laugh, "You're mad Gilbert."

"I just don't like backing out of dares unless I have to…or the dare is really bad. What's the worst dare you've ever had to do?"

Thinking about that for a moment, she grimaced, "Urgh, in freshman year I got dared to flash someone at a party and I did it. I mean, the guy moved out of town a few months later, but it was awful." Seeing me biting back laughter, she backtracked, "Not because of that! His parents moved to Richmond! No- aw…Elena…"

Laughing loudly at her annoyance, I shook my head, "The poor kid was probably traumatised-"

"-Hey!"

"Oh I'm kidding," She rolled her eyes but laughed anyway, "I wonder how long it'll take for the guys to get that wood."

She made a noise like a scoff, both of us glancing back towards the woods that they'd disappeared into, "God knows, I'd be surprised if we see them again before nightfall."

"I think all this nature's gone to their heads; they won't come back until they've proven that then can collect wood."

"Arrogant pricks, it's like proving their manliness."

"Really they have no need." I said with an amused sigh, leaning back on my hands as I swung my feet below, the tips of my toes skimming the water's surface every now and again, "Did you invite Mason?"

Feeling her surprised gaze on the side of my face, I looked over, confused by her cautious expression, "How did that thought come to your head?"

Sigh, "At the term 'arrogant prick', I'd say."

A glimmer of relief and I wondered why she'd even worry. Perhaps something to do with the fact that I kissed the guy a few months ago…had I ever regretted something so much? "I didn't invite him…well, not explicitly. I invited Tyler and said if he wanted to bring anyone he could…kind of made it seem like an open invitation so I guess he invited Mason along who then invited Connor too. And do you want to hear a secret?"

Glancing over at her, I was intrigued, "Do tell…"

She leant a bit closer, "I hate…Connor Jordan."

My eyebrows rose in surprise at the intensity of her statement, amused by it but curious as to why, "Really now…and what did he do?"

She made a face, struggling with her words a bit like I did when I tried to express how I felt about Dominic. No…not exactly like that. Because I didn't hate Dom (not all the time at least…I went through phases), "Because he's a total jackass! Honestly, he's worse than Mason. You should probably be worried actually."

Worried? Me… "Why?"

She sighed, giving me a look that said it should be obvious, "Because they're best friends! Mason wants you, Connor will help, the guy loves stirring up drama. So just…try and avoid them. I know you wouldn't do anything but they would so just be careful."

I believed her…of course I did. Mason was bad enough but now there were two of them…shit. I can't say I was too fond of Connor either, even if I'd only spoken to him a few times before, "Point taken. Thank you."

"Well we both know what Damon's like."

Sigh… "Yeah…" My mind went back a week to our date, "Boy can get jealous, thanks for the tip Care."

"No problemo." She said, waving it off and letting us fall back into a comfortable silence but I could tell she wanted to say something. Not prompting her, I let her take her time and then- she let out a loud squeal-type sound, doing a little dance with a huge grin on her face, "Oh my god you love Damon."

Oh good lord...