In honor of the Delena reunion and hopefully a HEA in this world and in the next, I have included a snippet of "Edge of Thorns" at the bottom of the chapter. As long as you're all around to keep reading Delena stories, I, along with Eva's invaluable assistance, will keep churning out stories.

"Miss Gilbert, I don't suppose I could trouble you for your attention?" Mr. Ames asks, looking at her over the top of his spectacles. Lifting her head, she looks around the room, finally settling on the teacher who is glaring at her with annoyance. Blooming with embarrassment, Elena straightens herself in her chair. Mumbling that she's sorry, she buries her face in her textbook. Moments later he starts walking through the rows of desks, dropping yesterday's tests results on each one. Seeing the C, Elena drops her chin to her chest in frustration. She's never going to get a scholarship if she doesn't snap out of her stress and Damon induced melancholy. Relieved when the bell rings, she sighs, picks up her things and walks down the hall towards her next class. Without her thoughts everywhere but what's right in front of her, she walks smackdab into a solid chest. Propelled backwards, she stumbles and lands flat on her ass.

"You stupid idiot, why don't you watch where you're going?" Chet, one of the football players yells at her.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention," she says, hastily getting to her feet.

"Well maybe you shouldn't be here then?" He sneers. Standing close enough to blow his putrid breath in her face, she backs away, matching every forward step he takes towards her. When her back brushes up against the bank of lockers, she tries to dart around him but he puts his arm up to stop her. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Just leave her alone, Chet?" Mason interrupts. With a look of sheer disdain, he launches a pointed barb at Chet, "Do you need to be an asshole to get hard?"

In the next moment, Chet raises his fist but Mason ducks in the nick of time sending Chet's fist into the locker. "Son of a bitch," he screams, nursing his now bloody knuckles. "This isn't over, Lockwood," he sneers as he walks away.

"Are you okay, Elena?" Mason asks, concern for his friend evident on his features.

"I'm fine. It was my fault, I walked into him but I didn't think he'd go ballistic on me."

"He's an ass. But promise me that if he bothers you some more, you'll tell me."

"I will. Thanks, Mase," she says softly, her shoulders sagging with fatigue."

"You look like hell, maybe you should take a beat? You know, take a nap?"

"I can't, Mason. My grades are already taking a beat. I'll never get a scholarship if I don't get them up."

"Alright then, I'll talk to Jess and then the three of us can have a study session either in the library or at Starbucks. You up for it?"

"If Zach can pick Mellie up from Mrs. Flowers, you have yourself a date. If not, I guess I'll go home."

"We could study at your place too, couldn't we?"

"I suppose," she adds, walking the short distance to her locker with him beside her.

"You probably don't want to hear this, Elena, but I think Damon was a selfish bastard for walking out on you again. He's Mellie's dad, he should be helping you with her."

"I don't want to talk about him... please, Mason?"

"Yeah, come on, I'll walk you to your next class." Elena nods, closes her locker again. Forcing a smile on her face, she walks alongside her friend, saying goodbye when they reach the classroom.

Following her intense study session with Mason yesterday, Elena actually slept good the night before. Thankful it's Friday and that the school is done for the weekend, she says goodbye to her friends to go home. Although Kol had mentioned coming to see her, he had to cancel when one of his co-workers at the minimart got sick so he was asked to work an extra shift. As much as he wanted to see Elena and Mel, he also wanted the extra money that he would earn.

When Elena makes the turn onto Zach's road, she happens to notice a new Ford Escape parked alongside the curb. Pulling into the driveway, Elena grabs her handbag and backpack and goes into the house. Usually she takes her things inside before walking over to Mrs. Flowers house to pick up Mellie. Immediately recognizing Damon's voice and Mellie's squeals, she finds him sitting on the living room floor doing puzzles with their daughter.

"When did you get here?"

Sensing she's still mad at him by the tone of her voice, he looks up. "I got here about an hour ago. I hope it's okay that I picked her up?"

"Suddenly you're concerned about what I think?" she mumbles under her breath but not so softly that he didn't hear. Dropping his eyes back to Mellie, he hands her one of the pegged pieces of the puzzle to let her work on it a little bit. With their daughter occupied, Damon stands up to walk over to Elena.

"Please talk to me, Elena?"

"It's all well and good that you want to talk about it now because you can just run away when it all becomes to much. But I can't, I'll never be able to. I don't have a choice because I have to be strong for our daughter. But you, things get a little uncomfortable and the first thing you do is run, Damon. I had to be pregnant by myself, I had to deliver her without you, I had to look for you for months all by myself. I finally find you, believe that maybe just maybe, things would get better but the first hint of trouble, you run out on me again," she snaps, pounding her fists into his firm chest when he gets too close. Knowing she needs to get it out but also knowing that he can't help her until he helps himself, Damon stays still, taking her punishment.

"Elena?" he says, his gut twisting painfully when she looks up at him through tear filled eyes.

"I know you had no control over the accident but you still left me, Damon. I'm sorry for what happened to you. If you think about it, it's my fault really.. you know.. that you had your accident. If I hadn't insisted on talking to my parents that day, maybe none of this would've happened? I'm tired of it and I just don't know what to do anymore. I don't know how to help you. And I can't make you love me again. You have to find that yourself, Damon."

Despite how painful this moment is for both of them, Damon is hyperaware of the feelings she's invoking inside of him by simple fact that she's so close. Even though it seems like they're a million miles apart right now, his heart is slamming against his sternum with such force, he inhales deeply and painfully because it feels like all of the oxygen is being sucked from his lungs.

Suddenly feeling panicked herself when her emotions threaten to consume her, Elena clenches her fists at her side for a couple of pumps. Rather than let him see her crash and burn completely, she steps away, grabs Mellie and runs upstairs and out of sight. Indeed feeling like he's had the wind knocked out of him, Damon is speechless. The last thing he wants is for her to blame herself for the tragic predicament they find themselves in. Although he wants nothing more than to go after her, he knows that he has nothing to offer that will alleviate her pain. When he hears a noise, he looks up to see that Jenna is picking up Mellie's puzzle.

"Did you hear?"

"I did hear, Damon."

Turning away for moment, Damon takes couple of deep in through his nose, out through his mouth breaths before looking at her again. "Is uncle Zach around? I'd really like to ask for some advice."

"He's cleaning out the fire pit. I can go with you if you'd like?"

"I don't want to hurt her anymore, Jenna."

"Believe it or not, I know that, Damon. But come on, let's go see if the three of us can come up with some kind of a solution," Jenna adds. Pausing at the refrigerator, she pulls a six pack of beer out. "Are you able to have a drink with your medication?"

"Um, I don't suppose one beer would hurt. I take my pills in the morning and it's late afternoon now."

"Okay then." With the six pack in hand, she and Damon walk outside to join Zach. When she hands him a bottle, Zach twists off the lid and takes a big swallow. "Why do you look like someone peed in your Wheaties, Damon?"

"Elena is hurt and angry and overwhelmed. I want to be able to help her but until I get my shit together, I don't know how to do that," Damon adds, sitting down on the edge of the fire pit. Taking a pull from his beer bottle, he stares at the now darkened window of the room that he used to sleep in.

"Aren't you supposed to go to talk to Dr. Mikaelson soon?"

"Yeah, I have an appointment on Monday. Do you want to ride along?"

"Sure, I'll go with you. Damon, you know that I love you like a son but surely you understand why your leaving upset her?"

"I know it's because I left. But Zach, she was miserable with me here. I thought my leaving would make things easier for her."

"It hasn't though Damon. She's struggling to maintain her grades in school. She hardly has a social life. On the rare occasion she does go out, it's because Jenna and I insist that she needs to have a little time to herself."

"Do you think I don't hate myself for it? But what can I do? I'm a fucking train wreck myself."

"I have an idea," Jenna adds, a smile forming on her face. "That is if you agree, Zach."

"Go on," he says, taking a deep slog from his bottle.

"I practically live here anyway. What if Damon moved into my place?" When she sees Zach's face light up, she turns to Damon and continues, "I have a tiny little place on the highway between here and St. Ignatius. It's only about ten miles away. If you moved in there, you'd be close enough to help her with Mellie."

"Jenna, I love you," Zach adds, pressing a kiss to her lips. "That's a brilliant idea. You can move in with me full time," he adds, waggling his brows suggestively.

"Zach, there are children present," she teases, leaning in so their shoulders are touching.

"Are you sure, Jenna? I don't want to kick you out of your place."

"I'm positive. You'll still have some privacy to work on yourself but you'll also be close enough to help Elena out. It's a win all around."

"If you're sure?"

"I'm positive, Damon," she adds, stealing another quick kiss from Zach's lips. Damon takes another pull from the long neck of his beer bottle.

With no one in the house but her and with Mellie asleep, Elena walks into Damon's room. She used to feel so close to him here, before everything got bad again. Turning on the light, she stares at the pictures sitting atop his dresser. It's like she had never lived here at all, the pictures are what they were when she moved in all those months ago. Sighing heavily, she walks over to the window for a moment. Having noticed the activity in the backyard, Elena ducks away, turning the lights out as she makes her escape.

When the light suddenly comes on in the window of Damon's now abandoned room, his breath catches in his throat when he sees her silhouette illimuniated against the curtain. Feeling a shiver of lust, he finds himself unable to look away. It's only when the room goes dark that he drops his gaze. What he doesn't see is the way Jenna and Zach are smiling at each other. Whether Damon knows it or not, to Jenna and Zach it's patently obvious that deep inside, Damon is still completely in love with the girl upstairs.

"So how do you feel about going back to the hospital? I know it's only to see your doctor but it still must stir some feelings?" Zach asks, meeting Damon's eyes quickly before turning his attention to the highway in front of them.

"I hope Brady is working today. Do you think I should get a landline too so Elena can get in touch with me if anything comes up with Mellie? And I want to be able to talk to keep in touch with Brady too."

"No, you have the cellphone I gave you. You don't need to pay for a landline too. Have you talked to your parents about moving into Jenna's place?"

"Yeah, at first they were against it but after I told them that I need to be close enough to be able to help out with my daughter, they reluctantly agreed."

"Good. It's a tiny little house. We would've offered it to Elena but there are no neighbors around to babysit nor would there be anyone in the house to keep an eye on Mellie while she wanted to shower or do some homework without being interrupted. Plus she'd have that much farther to drive to school everyday. I think it would've been too difficult for her to be alone with Mellie out there."

"I suppose," Damon adds, staring out of his passenger side window. His breath hitches slightly when he sees the hospital in the distance when Zach makes the turn leading to the place. As soon as he's parked, Damon unbuckles his seatbelt and gets out of the car. Just as he's about to take his first step towards the building, he sees Brady rushing over to greet him.

"Damon, it's good to see you," he blurts out, pulling him in when their hands join for a quick shake. When they let go of each other, he mentions that Damon looks good and asks him about his daughter.

"It's good to see you too, buddy. My daughter had her first birthday so that was an experience. Her mother and I aren't on the best of terms right now though."

"I'm sorry, Damon. Is there anything I can do?"

"No, I think I have to do this by myself. Do you know if Dr. Mikaelson is in his office?"

"I think so. I just got inside myself," Smiling at Damon, he finally notices Zach. "Oh, Mr. Salvatore, I didn't notice you."

"No worries," Zach says, offering Brady his hand to shake. Once they finish with their small talk, they walk into the building. Damon is immediately taken to Elijah's office while Brady sits down in the solarium to wait for Damon. Raising his hand shakily, Damon knocks on Elijah's door, stepping inside when he hears him say to come in.

"Damon, it's good to see you," he says, standing up to shake the young man's hand. After the greeting, Elijah points at the chair, motioning for Damon to have a seat. After filling a cup of coffee and offering Damon a refreshment, he sits back down. Tenting his hands, his fingertips touching, he asks Damon how everything is going.

Dropping his eyes to his clasped hands, Damon is quiet for a moment. Elijah notices that Damon's body language is guarded, even frustrated. Waiting patiently for Damon to respond, he just watches him. Damon takes a deep breath before finally raising his eyes. "I've messed up things with Elena."

"How so?"

"I was going to go home with my mom and dad and in hindsight, maybe that's what I should've done. But instead, I decided to stay with my uncle so I could be around Mellie. I wanted to be in my bedroom but that's where Elena and Mellie had taken up residence in. She got angry with me for kicking her out, her words. And then just as she was starting to come around, I moved out, going home to my parents. I thought it was the best thing I could do for her because she was avoiding me. She and Mellie relocated to the room farthest from mine. She hardly said two words to me till Mellie's birthday party. I just feel like I'm failing her. She held up so well while I was in here but as soon as I got out, she started to wobble. I just wanted to make things easier for her but it seems all that I accomplished was to make everything worse. I've dumped all the responsibility right back in her lap. She's hurt and my uncle said her grades are falling. I want to help her but how can if I don't know who I am?"

"Damon, first breathe. I know you want to be all things to all people right now but you have to be a little bit selfish. And I don't mean babysitting your daughter while she's at school, obviously you can help out in that kind of way but if you're thinking romance again, then you're right, you need to know who you are, what the two of you shared and what she still means to you. Do you still have romantic feelings for her?"

"I know that my blood feels like it's on fire when I'm near her. I know my heart starts to beat so fast that it feels like I can't breathe when I'm near her and I know she's beautiful and kind and that Mellie couldn't have a better mother."

"It certainly sounds like love, Damon. If you want my two cents, that is?" Elijah laughs, nodding his head slightly.

"I want to remember though. Everyday that goes by, it seems I lose a little more of her. She went to a football game with one of her male friends. It took every ounce of self restraint I own not to raise the roof. I hated seeing her leave with that guy. She didn't tell me that he was just a friend until the next day. And no, I don't think she was trying to be mean, I think it didn't even cross her mind to explain how it was till then. I hurt her badly."

"What are your plans going forward then? How are you going to help out with your daughter?"

"I'm moving to my uncle's girlfriend's place. It's only about ten miles from his house. That way I can babysit while Elena is at school and spend more time with our daughter. And perhaps her mother too," Damon adds, his stare so intense, it's almost like he's looking through Elijah.

"It looks like our time is up for today. Is there anything else you want to talk about before you go?"

"No, I just want to remember her."

"I understand, Damon, but the mind is a complex thing. As painful as the thought is, those memories may never come back. We just can't know with any certainty. But it's a fact that you have remembered a few things about your life with her, so perhaps it's just a matter of time. That's my hope anyway."

"That's my hope too, Dr. Mikaelson," Damon mentions rather robotically, his stare now focused on the picture of cattails that's hanging on the wall between the windows. "Has that always been there?"

"That Damon..., is a picture you drew not long after you arrived here. I had forgotten about it but I found it very recently in one of my files. You do good work."

"Thanks." Standing up, he walks over to it, running his fingers along the intricate frame. When he sees Elijah standing next to him, he shakes his hand, telling him he'll be back to see him next week. With the cattail picture in his mind, he walks out, but he can't help but wonder if somehow a distant memory of Elena is what made him draw something that she loves so much.

"Ma, ma," Mellie squeals and toddles towards Elena as soon as she steps inside the house.

"Hi baby. Mommy is so happy to see you," Elena gushes. As soon as she puts her books down on the foyer table, Elena picks her up and gives her a big hug. With Mellie in her arms, she walks into the living room where she finds Zach sitting on the couch. Dropping onto the couch beside him, she lets Mellie crawl down and start to play with her puzzles again. Looking at Zach, she says, "Was that Damon that I saw driving away?"

"Yeah, he was here for awhile. Don't take this the wrong way, Elena, but he didn't want his presence to upset you. That's why he wanted to be gone before you got home."

"Oh really, he thinks avoiding me will make it easier for him?"

"Elena, please? Damon is not doing this to hurt you, surely you know that? He's doing the best he can to hold it together, not just for himself but for you and Mellie too. He's trying to take things one day at a time. Please for his sake, have some understanding?"

"I should have some understanding?" she snaps, flying off the couch. Immediately she starts pacing back and forth as she tries to get her emotions back under control.

"Elena, please calm down. He's trying the best he can to become the man you need him to be. But it's not going to happen overnight."

"But what none of you seem to comprehend is that I'm at wit's end too. I can hardly keep up at school. My emotions are a fucking mess. I don't know up from down or where I stand with him."

"Elena?" Not knowing what to say, he stands up to take her in his arms but she backs away, not wanting anything from anyone in this moment. "Don't," she adds, raising her palm to him. "Can you watch Mellie for a little bit, I need some fresh air."

"Of course," he says softly, watching as she picks up her purse and disappears out of the front door. Jumping into her car, she backs out of the driveway and takes off down the street. She rolls the window all the way down, letting the breeze blow through her hair. Wanting some solitude and a place to think, she drives to the lake. Getting out of the car, she starts to walk along the water, kicking up the sand. She sees a cluster of old bulrushes, the seeds have all been dispersed. Sadly she'll have to wait till next year to see fresh ones. When she sees a downed dead tree trunk, she sits down and drops her face into her hands. Now that she's had a moment to calm down, she realizes that maybe what Zach is saying is true, that Damon is trying the best he can to be the man he used to be. Knowing that she needs to support him, she raises her eyes to look at the sun setting in the sky. The pinks and oranges and yellows are painting a beautiful canvas in the western half of the horizon. Her heart is fluttering chaotically in her chest and her stomach is doing somersaults because what if Damon never remembers her in the same way? Will he fall in love with her again or will they just co-parent Mellie? Feeling a few tears, she swallows thickly and wipes her eyes. Despite all the rancor between them lately, she still loves him more than words can express. Once the sun sinks below the horizon and with darkness starting to descend, she walks back to her car to go home to her daughter. Turning on the ignition, she starts to drive home. Breaking for a stoplight, her car is shoved out into the intersection when she's rear ended. Before she realizes what's happening, she's broadsided by another car. The last thing she remembers before succumbing to the darkness is the taste of her own blood as it runs down her face and onto her lips.

To be continued...

Huge thanks you to Eva. I love you very, very much.

And momentous thanks to all of you for making this story such a success. I cannot begin to thank you enough. You all the very best.

Chapter title: 'Listen to Your Heart' acoustic version by Roxette.

I have updated "TTBTR" and "PR" in the last couple of days as well.

Please remember to review.

Coming soon: "Edge of Thorns".

"Feeling her brain pounding against her temples like a jackhammer, Elena struggles to get her bearings. Waking up in a cold and dirty room, she raises up on her elbow. The last thing she remembers is leaving the courtroom to use the ladies room. Even with her vision blurry she can see that she's in some kind of a smelly and dank room. She can feel the chill deep inside of her bones but with no blanket, all she can do is curl up in a ball. There's not even a window in this dungeon for her to get any semblance of a location. How is Damon ever going to find her in a place like this?"

Be safe and have a wonderful weekend. Thank you all again.