The End Of Forever

Chapter 35

Season 7 "Finale"

Klaus spun the wheel sharply around the last corner, nearly sending the car onto two wheels as they sped closer to the bridge. Damon tapped the fingers of his good hand on the dashboard impatiently, not caring what kind of damage Klaus did to his precious car, only wanting to get to the bridge faster. It was far, but he could see the tail lights of the car Elena was in ahead, along with Ric's car, a little further in the distance.

Hopefully Elena would be able to convince the crazy woman to at least stop and turn around, or be cautious when approaching the bridge. Elena was usually pretty good at talking people into things, or OUT of things...which was usually the case with him. He had faith that she would be able to, if Mylea actually let her get a word in edgewise. Ric's truck was parked straight across it, there was no way Mylea would be able to maneuver around him without hitting it or going off the bridge.

Thankfully the car wasn't going too fast, Mylea was being cautious with her driving and Damon let out a sigh of relief as he saw the car slow just a little. His hopes were instantly dashed as the car suddenly shot forward as if someone had jammed on the gas and it started to swerve left then right for a moment.

"Elena, what the hell are you doing?" He muttered to no one in particular. It was clear that Mylea hadn't been happy about Elena waking up and didn't like the idea of stopping.

He wasn't going to lie, when he was finally able to catch up to her, he was going to kill her.

Now that he was a human, she was likely to give him a heart attack.

She'd been somewhat safe (as safe as a "spirit," or whatever the hell she was, could be) in the car with them and then she had to go and put herself in danger on purpose. It was a completely "Elena" move, and just like he had to learn how to calm HIMSELF down in the face of danger and think before he acted, she was going to have to learn to keep herself away from trouble.

"If you reach them, just bump them.' Damon growled.

"And scratch your precious car?" Klaus mumbled, sending him a sly glance. His foot was on the gas, giving it as much pressure as possible without smashing it right through the floorboard of the car itself. They were getting closer, but there was no way that they were going to catch them. He knew it, Damon knew it. There was no point in mentioning it though.

With his super human eyesight he could see from where they were, what was going on in the car and it looked like Elena was putting up a good fight. She was leaned as far over the front seat as possible, her blonde hair flowing every which way. As the car continued to swerve this way and that, it was clear to him that Elena was choking the driver.

Beyond them , he could see Alaric and his bride struggling to get out of the car. Ric was clearly paying no mind to the car shooting toward them, but the woman was. She was struggling to push Alaric out of the car but failing. Her hands kept falling off his shoulders as she tried to push, but Alaric would just shrug them right off and continue

Klaus gripped the steering wheel harder, his knuckles turning white, as if the harder he held the wheel, the faster he would go.

He wondered when exactly it was that he started caring about this silly group of people.

Was it only because he wanted approval from Caroline or was it something else? Was it his daughter that had turned him so soft?

The thought had crossed his mind once or twice in the last day or so, but he was going to have to do something particularly evil later to make up for this.

Damon's ground his teeth in agitation, trying his best to calm himself. They were getting closer to them, but he knew it wouldn't be enough. He wanted to close his eyes and block everything out, but he couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from the disaster about to happen.

If Alaric would just move out of the way, it was would be possible that the car itself would be able to protect Jo, but with the way Ric was standing outside the car, his legs just below the door, he was likely to get cut in half, or at the very least, lose his legs, when the car actually slammed into them.

If he was lucky, he'd stay alive long enough to give him some blood.. But there was no way that vampire blood would grow back legs, not without Ric becoming a vampire again.

If he did, they would grow back.

Damon knew ALL about that... first hand.

He shuddered.

He wanted to pray, but after more than a century of ignoring God's existence, he didn't think the man would be likely to listen.

He was concerned so much for his best friend and for Jo… that it was a complete shock to his system to see the car… the car ELENA was in, suddenly launch itself into the air.

His heart stopped.

"No, no, no, no…" He muttered, slamming his fist onto the dash. While the cast protected his hand for the most part this time, he still cringed, the pain vibrating through his hand. It was the least of his worries though as he watched the car flipped over and over and over.

Klaus slammed on the brakes, coming to a stop close to the flipping car before it even landed and Damon was out the door as it made it's final bounce, directly onto the passenger side. The street was eerily silent after such a loud crash, the only sound he could hear now was the rushing of blood in his ears.

Smashing his shoulder into the roof of the car, he placed his feet firmly against the pavement and tried with all his strength to push the car right side up. "Damnit!" He was too weak. He repositioned himself and tried again, feeling beads of sweat break out on his forehead.

Damn being human, what good was he this way?

"Watch out mate." Klaus said from behind him, pushing him slightly out of the way with one hand. Once he was sure that Damon was out of harm's way, he placed a firm grip on the roof, near the window, and pushed the car over. He sent a smirk in Damon's direction but noticed that the other man wasn't paying any attention to him. Behind him, he saw Stefan's SUV pull up behind Damon's car and come to a quick stop. He stepped out of the car, his look one of pure panic, and made to rush toward them, but Klaus held his hand up for him to stay where he was.

He was able to see the way that Stefan's face rippled, saw how out of control he was. If he DID lose control, he'd be able to stop him, but he didn't want it to come to that.

Damon was too distracted to care about Klaus's showboating or about Stefan's arrival.

Elena's head rested unmoving on the bottom portion of the broken window, her blonde hair tinged a bright red, duct tape wrapped around her head, stuck to her hair and around her face. Damon reached his hands out to push some of her loose hair back gently, scared of doing more damage. "Lena?" He whispered quietly, holding his breath and waiting for her answer. There was none from her, but as he stepped closer, he did see the slight rise and fall of her chest as she breathed and he thanked God for small favors.

Though he did wonder, if she died in this body, if she would automatically be sent to her old self. Once again he wished that they'd done more research week's (months!) ago when they'd first learned of traveling.

She'd landed perfectly in the seat, as if she had been wearing a seat belt, though he knew she hadn't been. The other woman was laying on top, her upper body crumpled in Elena's lap. Damon gestured toward Stefan and Klaus. He was going to need help getting the both of them out of the car. He didn't want to open the door and have Elena fall out since she was leaning so heavily on it.

Each of the other men stepped up without argument. "Stefan, can you brace Elena's shoulders through the window?" He asked, checking to see how Stefan was handling the situation. He could tell he was having a hard time with the blood from the way his nostrils flared, but his eyes and face hadn't changed yet, so Damon would have to trust him for the time being. He tried to move the door by himself, but realized quickly that the crash had damaged it and twisted it too much for it to be opened. He sighed, turning to Klaus. "Are you able to get this open?" He asked. He really didn't want to have to go through the other side and drag her out.

Klaus nodded and got to work, Damon taking a step back from the car. He was taking deep breaths, trying his best to remain calm. He knew flying off the handle would do no good. And while he wanted nothing more that to rip that door off it's hinges and pull Elena out, he knew that it would only hurt her more. His hands shook by his sides with the need to do something but he held back until he finally heard the crack of the door opening.

He lunged forward, ready to catch Elena if Stefan slipped but his brother held her firm and even when Klaus pulled the door completely away, Elena didn't move. Damon sighed in relief and nudged his arms as carefully as he could, underneath her knees and slid her out from beneath Mylea's dead weight. As he did, he noticed the odd angle of the woman's neck and realized that it had snapped while the car was flipping.

Not caring one bit about the currently dead woman (though he did regret they couldn't tie her up and torture some answers out of her) he shot a quick look at Klaus. "I think she's dead, but if she is a guardian or whatever the heck Elena was talking about, who knows. She's yours to deal with now."

Klaus nodded, thankful to be in charge of someone (something) that wanted his death. He swooped in and, none too gently, hauled the woman's body from the car, threw her over his shoulder and started walking back toward Damon's camaro.

"Is she breathing?" Stefan asked from over his shoulder, as Damon gently lowered himself to his knees and placed Elena's legs on the ground, lowering her completely so that her back was resting against his chest. He only nodded in response to Stefan's question, not quite sure he trusted his own voice at the moment. Now that he had her laid out, he was able to get a full look at her body from the help of a nearby streetlamp and he winced at all the damage he could see.

He worried at all the damage he COULDN'T see.

He used his index finger to loosen the tape around her mouth and face until he was able to push it down enough that it hung loosely around her neck. He would figure out how to get it off her hair later.

Damon's hand hovered over Elena's bound ones, wanting badly to rip the tape away but seeing what bad shape her arm was in, he decided not to even touch it. It would be best to wait for Jo to take a look at her before he did anything. "Go help Ric get Jo out of the car Stefan." Wanting to get Stefan away from the scene and also needing Jo's expertise. He didn't hear him leave, but he did feel a soft breeze ruffle the back of his hair as Stefan zipped away.

"We'll have matching casts now."

A soft voice said, breaking through the haze that had seemed to cover him for a minute. Startled, he glanced down and was surprised to see Elena's dark blue eyes gazing up at him. They weren't open all the way, but she looked somewhat alert and that was all that mattered. He let out a breathe of relief that he didn't even realize he'd been holding.

"You scared the hell out of me." Damon said with a quick laugh.

Elena blinked up at him, trying to clear her vision but it was no use, he was so close to her face, but he was still just a blur. "Sorry." She said, exhaling then wincing as she realized that she definitely had a few broken ribs along with the arm. Elena attempted to adjust herself to make the pain a little more bearable but let out a gasp instead as it suddenly felt like something was stabbing her in the side.

"Relax, Relax!" Damon shuffled around Elena, trying to get her to stop moving and rest back against his chest, but she wouldn't stop fighting him. "Jo's going to be here in a minute, stop moving until she can look you over okay?" He said, a frown growing across his face as it seemed that since she moved, her breaths seemed more labored and frantic "Guys, we don't have all day!" He shouted over his shoulder.

Glancing back down at Elena he saw that her eyes were wide and she was gasping for breath, her lips, instead of a pale pink from before, were starting to turn a light shade of blue.

It was like she was drowning, even though she hadn't gone into the water.

He searched the darkness in front of him toward his car and saw Klaus closing the trunk. "Klaus!" Before Damon could even blink, Klaus was in front of him, leaning over the other side of Elena, a perplexed look on his face. "Do something!" Damon demanded.

Klaus shushed him. "I think she has a punctured lung." He muttered, trying to listen as best he could. There was definitely something not right with the sound her chest was making. He glanced up at Damon, his eyes serious. "I really can't do anything."

Rage overtook Damon in an instant. "What do you mean you CAN'T do anything? Can't or WON'T? You can damn well give her your blood and HEAL her!" He said, eyes flaring.

Elena was clutching onto his shirt with her bound hands, even though she couldn't breathe, she couldn't let him mouth off to Klaus like that. It was too dangerous. Klaus had been very helpful the last few days, but who knows when that kindness would run out and he would snap? He could kill Damon with the flick of his wrist and this time, there would be no bringing him back from the dead.

Klaus took a breath, letting the comments slide once again. They'd all better let Caroline know what a good boy he'd been after all this was over. He stared Damon down, to tell him just how serious he was about not giving her blood, when the others finally joined them, sans Stefan who remained down by the water. Jo threw her medical bag down on the ground to his right.

"What I mean," He said, his voice as calm as possible. "Is that I cannot give her my blood. If she is, in fact, a Guardian… BORN to destroy me, an Original… what do you think my blood will to do her?" He shook his head, looking down at Elena struggling to breathe. Their eyes locked. "You do understand this, don't you?"

Elena nodded as best she could. Of course she understood, it made perfect sense.

Damon clenched his fist, wanting badly to break something. He looked at Jo, and watched as she dug a scalpel out of her kit and flicked it quickly over the tape wrapped around Elena's wrists. Her broken arm immediately fell off his lap and onto the pavement but she didn't seem to notice as she still struggled to breathe. Without a word, Jo pushed up the side of Elena's bloodstained scrubs and grimaced, seeing the dark purple shade growing against her clearly shattered ribs. She shook her head, took a deep breath and plunged the scalpel into Elena's side.

Wincing, Damon turned away, he couldn't bear to watch the rest of what Jo was doing. He met Ric's eyes, who was knelt down next to him. Ric reached out and clutched Damon's shoulder, giving it a tight squeeze. He'd seen this look in Damon's eyes before, pure terror, a number of years ago. He was just a ghost in a warehouse, as his best friend clutched onto his own dead body. They'd both realized what it meant at the same time.

Elena's death.

He hadn't been able to be there for his friend then, but he was glad he could be there for his friend now.

Damon felt Elena jerk in his arms and he glanced down, scared, but she was now taking a large normal breath. Thinking it was over, he let his gaze stray from Elena to Jo, but noticed that the tube she'd inserted into Elena's side was gushing blood onto the pavement.

Knowing the situation wasn't the best, Elena was still happy to be able to catch enough breath to finally speak again. Elena turned her head to face Jo. "Glad… you're okay." She forced out softly.

Jo laughed, wiping at the tears that were suddenly falling down her cheeks. "Thanks to you. You brave … stupid girl." She reached out and cupped her hand on Elena's thin face. This wasn't the face she knew, not the one she was used to, but it didn't matter.

She pulled her hand away as Ric pushed himself up from where he was next to Damon, in order to join her on the other side of Elena. Klaus moved away to stand by the wrecked car, not sure if he should be involved in the intimate moment.

Damon brushed Elena's hair out of her face and behind her ear gently, careful not to touch the still bleeding cut above her eyebrow, and guided her to look at him.

She squinted up at him, upset that she still wasn't able to make out his beautiful face. "Love… you."

He swore he wouldn't do it, but the tears came anyway, making his own vision blur. "I love you too Elena." Damon wasn't going to make the same mistake twice. He'd learned his lesson just a few days ago when he hadn't said it back to her. It was something he'd regretted since the moment her eyes had closed.

"You're going to be fine." He muttered, using the pad of his thumb to wipe away some of the blood from her cheek. "You're just not allowed near cars anymore."

Elena let out a strangled laugh that turned quickly into an ugly gurgle as blood rushed out of her mouth.

Cringing at the sight of the blood that now stained her lips a bright red (something that he had thought sexy once upon a time) he glanced up and over at Jo for a little help. She met his eyes and shook her head. "We're not going to be able to get her to the hospital in time, even if one of you were able to speed her over there."

"I'm sorry." Elena breathed out, her hand seeking out his. He adjusted himself and laced his fingers through hers. "It was the right thing… to do."

Damon wanted to argue with her but he knew there was no point. He lifted his head and searched for his brother, finally seeing him standing, hunched over, by the water. "Stef, do you think you can control yourself long enough to give her some blood?" Damon didn't bother to raise his voice, he knew Stefan was able to hear him. He watched as his brother's shoulders shuddered and then stiffened, before he turned back toward them. He was holding himself together, barely. As Stefan approached, Damon could see the red tint in his eyes, from where he sat on the ground, but he hadn't gone all out vampy-face yet so he had some hope at least.

"You sure this is a good idea?" Ric whispered under his breath, not sure if he wanted Stefan anywhere near Elena. It was clear that Stefan wasn't handling this well at all and the last thing they all needed was him attacking. But it's not like they had much of a choice, Klaus's refusal, though understood, left them with only one option.

At least Klaus was still standing nearby in case things went wrong. He was the only one there that would be able to subdue Stefan if things got out of hand.

Damon shook his head. "It's my ONLY idea. I'm useless." He muttered staring down at Elena not knowing what else to do. There was nothing he COULD do except watch her bleed out on the road that she had cheated death on so many times before in the past.

Stefan held his breath as he dropped down next to his brother, doing the very best he could not to breathe in how amazing all the spilled blood smelled. He hadn't eaten in what felt like decades, since all of this started just a few days ago, and he was only realizing it just now. His nostrils flared of their own accord and his teeth elongated.

He struggled for control of himself. God this was ELENA he was thinking about as a meal.

A meal that was being horribly wasted as it gushed onto the ground… that ripper voice inside his head said to him.

Before he could do anything he would regret, he felt two strong hands come down on his shoulders, holding him locked into place just as he was about to lunge forward. "Now Stefan… be a good vampire and bite your wrist and give it to Elena." Klaus said, his voice slightly mocking.

But that was a good thing, because the mocking was what ripper Stefan was used to. That TONE was one that he was familiar with, one that he respected once upon a time. Without thinking too much about it, Stefan bit hard into his wrist, tearing off a chunk of it and spitting out the skin next to him on the ground, then held his wrist over Elena's face.

Damon, unafraid, grabbed his brother's wrist and guided it closer to Elena's parted lips as she stared up at him, her eyes blank. She wasn't swallowing. Or blinking. "Elena." He said through clenched teeth. He'd only taken his eyes off of her for one moment. Had she already slipped away from him?

"God DAMNIT Elena, DRINK!" He said, using his arm under her shoulders to shake her. Her eyes just stared straight up, glazed over. He was about to panic before he saw Jo lean forward.

Without having to be told to, Jo reached over and massaged Elena's throat, trying to relax it and help her swallow She could feel the reflex happening below her fingertips. This might just work, she thought to herself. This group crazy group effort. IF this Elena didn't have any kind of adverse reaction to vampire blood.

But it seemed as if she didn't because not only did Elean close her eyes, but she lifted her good hand to take a grip of Stefan's and push it closer to her mouth as she took large gulps.

Damon let go of Stefan's hand and sat back a little, glad to see Elena responding just fine to the blood. He took a look down at her arm and noticed that the bones were locking back into place.

Well, he thought… there goes the matching cast's idea, wishing that he too could take some blood and heal his own hand.

He glanced up at Jo, lifting an eyebrow and nodding down to the tube. "You might want to take that out or else she's going to heal around it and it will be a real bitch to get out later."

He knew that from experience too.

Startled, Jo looked down and sure enough, the wound WAS closing, healing right over the plastic. She yanked at it, and though it was a little difficult, was able to get it out without having to use the scalpel. She watched in amazement as the wound closed up, the purple skin around it healing and the broken ribs underneath snapping back together like a ripple under the now pale unblemished skin. Jo reached out and pulled down the shirt.

Stefan groaned. "That's enough." He said, trying to pull his arm away from Elena. She was taking much more than she needed he could tell, and he suddenly felt like he was going to throw up. But she held firm, suddenly stronger than him and nearly growled, digging her fingernails into his flesh.

"Elena, you can stop now." Damon said, growing a little concerned. He too reached out and tried to unlatch her from Stefan's arm but he had no luck either.

Elena's eyes popped open, glowing gold and locked onto Damon's shocked ones as she took another greedy gulp from Stefan's arm. "Elena…?" Damon asked again, not quite sure if this was his Elena he was talking to.

Their gazes stayed locked until suddenly the gold dimmed and turned back to her regular dark blue and she seemed to become more aware of who she was and what was going on. She let Stefan's arm drop from her mouth and she shot up into a sitting position, wiping the at the blood dripping from her mouth with her sleeve. She turned quickly toward Stefan. "Oh my God are you okay?" She asked, horrified at what she'd been doing.

Stefan rolled his eyes, leaning back onto the pavement to catch his breath. "You almost died, AGAIN... and you're asking me if I'm okay?" He said, following with a quick laugh. The beast was tamed for now. He was too weak for the ripper to do anything. She'd really taken a lot of blood from him…

Elena laughed, scratching her head. "Yeah, I guess that did sound a little stupid. I'm sorry either way."

She spun again, this time toward Damon and nearly jumped at him, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his shoulder. "I'm so sorry." She mumbled, her lips grazing his collarbone.

Damon pulled her as close as possible, planting a kiss on her forehead. "Just don't do it again." He muttered into her hair. He'd save the lectures and speeches for later. This mess was finally over and she was in his arms and that's all he cared about right now. "Seriously, don't. I don't know how much this human heart can take."

Elena pulled back, tears in her eyes and planted a quick kiss on his lips. Without taking her arms off of Damon, she turned around to look at everyone sitting on the ground. "Thank you for coming for me guys." She said, a little blush tinting her cheeks. "Can we please go home now?"

They all laughed, wiping at their faces, the previously sad tears having turned into happy ones. Ric stood up and leaned over to also plant a kiss on her head. "Yeah, let's go home." He said, reaching over and patting Damon on the shoulder.

Without losing contact with her, Damon swooped her up in his arms and carried her over to Stefan's SUV, not wanting to have her in the same car with Mylea's body, just in case. He was sure that Klaus would be able to handle her if she DID somehow wake up. As he approached the back door, Elena reached out and opened it so that they could slip inside without him having to put her down. He settled into the back, placing her comfortably in his own lap as they watched Stefan and Klaus push Mylea's car into the river below.

"Is it over?" Elena asked, as she watched the car sink.

Damon didn't want to make any promises, they still knew nothing about the woman or if she would wake up… or if other guardian's would come after Elena just as Mylea had. As long as Elena was in this body, she was going to be sought after.

He sighed.

That was nothing new. They'd already dealt with that, they'd been dealing with it for years where Elena was concerned.

But for now, he didn't want to ruin her good mood, so he nodded. "It's over." He said, pulling her even closer.

She knew it was a lie, but she didn't care. It was exactly what she needed to hear at the moment and Damon knew it.

Stefan jumped into the front seat and turned the car on before even shutting the door.

"Are you alright to drive?" Elena asked.

Stefan laughed. "I"m fine Elena, I think I can manage a few miles to the house before I collapse." He said, meeting her eyes through in the mirror. He took a peek at Damon who now had HIS head buried in Elena's shoulder. He looked exhausted, with bluish bags under his eyes, but he finally looked happy. Stefan smiled as he put the car in reverse. Maybe now they would be able to all get a good night's rest.

And tomorrow, maybe they would all finally be able to celebrate the happy couples engagement.

Elena sighed contently as she watched the trees pass them by in the night. She was so tired but at the same time she felt wired from the blood she'd taken from Stefan. The last time she'd taken blood willingly as a human had been when she'd stabbed herself trying to trick Elijah at the cabin and she didn't remember it having tasted so good or going out of control when drinking it. She wondered if it had anything to do with her previous vampire status or if it was some kind of Guardian power.

She'd lost herself there for a minute, while drinking his blood and knew if she hadn't locked eyes with Damon that she would have sucked Stefan dry without a second thought.

Elena decided to dismiss the thought. They would do some research tomorrow, after she'd gotten to see everyone. She didn't want to think about it.

The boarding house finally came into view and Elena let out a sigh of relief. After everything, she was finally home.

Damon cursed into Elena's hair. Every single light was on. "Doesn't blondie know that electricity costs money?" He said, rolling his eyes.

Stefan shook his head and met his brother's eyes through the mirror. "After all of this, you're going to worry about your electric bill? Really?"

Laughing, Elena tried to adjust herself to get off of Damon's lap so it would be easier to exit the car, but he only held her tighter and shook his head. Elena shrugged, not minding being held for longer. She would ignore everything else that there was to do and to think about until tomorrow.

Like how if she hopped back into her own body now, she would be a vampire, and Damon would want to be human. Something they'd argued about in the past. With no way to go get that other cure, what would that do to their relationship?

And if she went back to her old body, what would happen to the other Elena? Would she go back to being herself? A crazy girl with some psychic guardian powers? And what would become of her family? Would the girl just die like she'd intended?

If she chose to stay in this body...would she have to go live with Aunt Judith and Margaret? Pretend to be friends with people she didn't know? Go back to high school?

She shuddered at the thought.

So many things to think about.

But not tonight. Tonight it was time for a reunion. A celebration. They'd beaten the odds... barely. And she FINALLY felt good, the haze from the medication was gone and she was able to think clearly. The feeling of nausea was gone.

And oh God… she couldn't wait to take a shower. A private shower with no one guarding over her and watching her like a hawk.

Well… maybe she'd let Damon in with her.

Stefan let the SUV roll to a stop as he parked behind Matt's truck. "Guess that answers the question on where everyone is." He said, taking note of all the cars. "Doesn't explain why no one is answer their phone though." Parking the car, he didn't waste time pulling the keys from the ignition and hopping out. He watched as Ric's car pulled up behind him and Damon's car pulled up in the rear.

He poked his head back into the car, seeing that Damon hadn't moved from his spot. "Uh… " He smirked, seeing the pair wrapped up in each other. "You need a little help?"

Damon groaned, not happy with being interrupted and pulled away from Elena. "Nah, I got this brother. You go make sure that Klaus didn't scratch my car." He said, sending a lopsided grin Stefan's way. Stefan only rolled his eyes and walked away laughing, realizing that his brother wanted a little alone time before everyone tried to steal Elena away.

Elena laughed, pushing Damon slightly away from her. "Damonnn…" She wined softly, "I want to go take a shower. I'm a mess." She said, pouting.

"Only if you let me come with you." He said, kissing her on the forehead and reluctantly letting go of her to push the door open.

She grinned at his response. "As if there is ever any other way to take a shower…" She said, her eyes turning a dark shade of blue to show she was MORE than interested in just a shower. It had been a long few days… and they had yet to celebrate their engagement to each other.

Most people would probably want to shower alone, being covered in blood. But she knew that it was nothing Damon hadn't seen before. And she doubted he would let her out of sight long enough to take a shower on her own.

She hopped off his lap and into the driveway, glancing over to see what the others were doing. They all stood, gathered around Damon's trunk, probably thinking about what to do with Mylea's body. She did feel bad about killing the woman, but she wouldn't take it back. It hadn't been her intention at all, she'd just wanted to save her friends. And she didn't regret it one bit. The alternative was too horrible to even think about.

And really, who would have known that the strange woman would die from just a car accident?

Damon got out of the car behind her, slamming the door shut and putting his good hand on the small of her back. She shivered at the contact, but it had nothing to do with her being cold. Damon, however, misunderstood. "Where did you supernaturally leave my favorite jacket?" He asked, trying to tease her to get her mind off the fact that they were carting around a dead body.

Elena glanced down at herself, seeing that she was in her scrubs. Of course she was, she thought, shaking her head. She'd been physically wearing the scrubs since she was admitted to the hospital. She met his gaze, a light blush spreading across her cheeks. "Um, I guess we'll have to wait until I fall asleep to see if I pop back up wearing it?"

Damon laughed, obviously not caring about the jacket. It didn't have much sentimental value as the ORIGINAL one he bought of it, that had blown up along with his car and the grill. "You'll just have to buy me a new one." He said, using his pointer finger to tap her lightly on the nose. He guided her toward the front door, leaving the others to figure out what to do with Mylea. Hopefully they would take her body into the basement and lock it up. Lord only knows if she would wake up like Elijah once had. This time they would be prepared.

As they stepped up the steps to the main entrance they were shocked when the door swung open on it's own.

"Oh my GOD! I've been waiting FOREVER for you guys to get home." The man in the doorway said, leaning against the side of it and crossing his arms.

Damon swiftly moved in front of Elena, glaring at the figure standing in front of them.

Pleased brown eyes moved from looking at Damon, to looking past him, at Elena. His eyebrows raised in curiosity and he stepped closer. Damon held his ground against the psycho in his house, reaching back to hold onto Elena's hand. "Why Damon… you got a new girlfriend? Already? How long have I been gone? THAT will be interesting later…" He tilted his head to the side to get a better look at Elena and smiled brightly as Damon tried, unsuccessfully, to block her from his view. "So pretty. So different than your usual type!"

The man leaned even closer, holding out a hand.

"It's SO nice to meet you, young lady. My name is Kai."

Once again, sorry for the wait as usual. Between road trips, tons of work and doctor visits, this one did not want to be written.

I feel like it was rushed and didn't have a lot of emotion in it, but I wanted to get out out for you guys. I just feel like it's lacking. I hope you enjoyed it though. AND I hope you enjoy seeing our "unwelcome guest!"

Thought it was Tyler didn't you? Or did you completely forget about the trouble in the boarding house since it's been so long?

Come visit and say hello on facebook

Facebook dot com slash TheEndOfForeverTVD

On a side note... East Coast road trips are much more fun then West Coast road trips. I think I like driving on flat land better than the side of mountains.

Remember... reviews are love! And constructive criticism is always welcome.