I'm trying not to make ya'll wait too long lol, especially with all the reviews ya'll are leaving! Love them:)
Though I will be out of town this week. I'll try to update regularly, but can't make any promises.
Thanks :)
Elena was glad it was nearly Christmas.
Work and volunteering kept her busy when she was out, and now Caroline was keeping her busy at home.
She liked busy.
She liked anything that kept her mind buzzing, so she didn't have to stop and think about what the doctor had told her.
The truth she refused to share, even with her best friend.
Grayson knew, and so did Lexi, but both had sworn ignorance, understanding that it was Elena's secret to keep or share.
Besides, who would Grayson tell?
And Lexi was so busy with Stefan now, Elena doubted she gave it much thought.
Unlike Caroline, who was as tactless as ever.
"So what's going on with you and Damon?" the blonde demanded, as she and Elena were baking Christmas cookies to take to the refuge for Jenna.
"Nothing," she answered defaultly, "Why?"
"Why?" Caroline shot, "Maybe because the two of you barely say a word to each other anymore, and I haven't walked in on you making out once in the past two weeks, until which, the record was three days. You seriously expect me to believe that nothing's going on?"
"I expect you to take those triple chocolate chips out of the oven before they burn," she motioned, and Caroline rolled her eyes, before checking the cookies.
Sure enough, that batch was a yummy golden, and needed to be removed.
They loaded up the next tray, white chocolate macadamia this time, and put them in the oven.
"There, cookies are safe," Caroline reasoned, "Now talk to me."
Elena sighed, "It's not that anything is going on, Care. We're just...adjusting."
"Honey, there's adjusting, then there's leaving the poor guy out in the cold. You've been freezing him out since you came back from the hospital."
"You're being dramatic," Elena accused.
"Am I?" the blonde paused, looking at her, "Because I watch him try to reach out to you, and I watch you shove him away."
"I don't shove him away," she defended herself, "I told you, we're having trouble adjusting."
"Maybe you wouldn't be, if you'd just talk to him," Caroline insisted, "He loves you, Elena. You hurting is putting him through hell. And he said that there was something mentioned about your uncle, and-"
"Do you two make a habit of talking about me behind my back?" she snapped, turning on her friend, "What? Did he tell you to pry answers from me so you can run and tell him?"
"We're just concerned," Caroline said quietly.
Elena shook her head, "We'll, don't be. I'm fine."
She reached over to a small tub of already bagged cookies, "I'm going to run these up to the hospital. I'm sure you can handle the rest."
Caroline nodded, and was smart enough not to try and stop her.
The hospital wasn't overly busy, though it had its steady stream of patients.
Elena wandered down the service desks, giving the bags of cookies to the nurses on duty, and to some of the volunteers.
They smiled, thanked her, and struck up conversations that had nothing to do with the baby, Damon, or the past.
She finally felt like she could breathe.
When she'd dispensed all but two bags of cookies, she made her way to Grayson's office.
Her father knew better than to bring up the issues she was trying to ignore, and for that, she was thankful.
She knocked on the door, and his voice answered, "Come in."
He smiled as he looked up and saw that it was her, "Elena, hey."
"Hey," she said, sitting down in the chair opposite of him, "I brought you holiday cookies."
"My favorite kind," he joked.
She smiled, and handed him a bag, then opened the last one for herself.
"These are really good," he complimented, having tried one.
Elena nodded, taking a bite.
"Caroline and I made a whole bunch of them."
Grayson ate another one, "Christmas baking, huh?"
"Jenna, at SC called," she explained, "They do parties for the children, and Caroline told her we'd contribute. I brought the extra up here for the staff."
"That was kind of you," he noted, then changed topics, "So...what are your plans for Christmas?"
Elena finished off her third cookie, "Well Caroline and I agreed to help out at SC Christmas morning. They have a good handful of kids, and it's better when the volunteers understand their needs."
Grayson nodded, "You really care about that place, huh?"
"It's my home," she said simply, "The people there raised me, and if I can contribute back to their generosity, even the littlest bit, I will."
"I'm sorry," he started immediately, guilt covering his face.
Elena shook her head, "Don't worry about it. I've already taken a trip too many down bad memory road this week."
Her father frowned, "So, you told him then?"
She knew he meant Damon.
She shook her head, "I...I can't. Not yet."
Grayson sighed, "He deserves to know, sweetheart. Especially if you plan on spending the rest of your life with him."
Elena nodded, swallowing hard, "I know."
She just didn't know how to start that conversation, especially knowing it could change everything.
"I should go," she started.
Grayson nodded, "Okay. But I'm here, you know, if you need to talk."
"Thanks," she offered, then turned to the door.
As she crossed the hall, she ran into a group of volunteers she recognized from school.
She walked over to them, "Hey!"
Liam, one of the guys in the group grinned at her, "Oh, hey Elena! Those cookies were amazing, by the way."
She laughed, "Glad you liked them."
"Are you going to the staff party tonight?" Megan, another volunteer, asked.
Elena shrugged, "I wasn't really planning to-"
"Great!" Liam cut in, "Then you should come to campus. Some of the guys in my hall are throwing this Christmas bash thing, before we all leave for the holidays. There will be alcohol, lots of it. And food."
Elena grinned, thinking that it might be just what she needed, "Well, how can I say no to that?"
Megan smiled now, "Good, at least I'll know someone else there."
"You know me," Liam accused.
"You don't count," the girl insisted, and Liam feigned offense.
Elena laughed, "So, what time should I-"
"About eight, though it'll go all night, I'm sure."
"I get off work at nine," she admitted.
"Where do you work?" Liam asked, "I can swing by and get you when your shift ends."
"At the diner, off of second and Blake street. But I have my car. I'll need to go home and change anyway. I'll just meet you guys there?"
They nodded, and she smiled, "Perfect."
Hours later, Damon sat in his bedroom, thinking about what Caroline had told her.
Elena wasn't acting like herself, and it bothered him more than he cared to admit.
He didn't like feeling as though she were pulling away from him.
He pulled out his phone to text her.
Maybe they could go to dinner or something, and really talk.
She needed to.
But before he could type up a message, the door opened, and Elena walked into the room.
He jumped up, "I didn't hear you come in."
"Sorry," she answered hurriedly, walking over to the closet as she began stripping her uniform.
"You off work?"
She nodded, "Yep."
He climbed to his feet, "Listen, angel, I was wondering if you maybe wanted to-"
"Hand me my red earrings, would you?" she asked, coming out of the closet holding a matching dress.
He nodded, and reached around to her jewelry box, doing as she asked.
"Would you maybe want to go to dinner somewhere?" he asked, handing them to her.
"I can't," she said, pulling on the dress, "I have plans."
"Plans?" He clarified, "What plans?"
Elena paused for a half second, after sitting on the edge of the bed to pull on a pair of black pantiehose, "A Christmas party at the hospital. The staff and the volunteers were all invited. Grayson really wanted me to go."
"Oh," disappointment crossed his expression, "Okay...well, do you need a ride? I can-"
"I'm fine," she answered, moving to the bathroom.
Damon followed her, and watched as she pulled up her slightly curled hair.
God, she looked good.
The dress was tight, showing off her curves, and the straps teased her shoulder, making him want to pull them down slowly, and follow the path with his mouth.
He shook his head, "We need to talk."
"We're talking," she pointed out, touching up her make up, and turning back to the bedroom.
"I mean really talk. Angel, can we please just-"
"I'm gonna be late," she cut him off, giving a small peck to his lips, "Don't wait up."
And she was gone, leaving him blinking after her.
Elena had been right.
This was exactly what she needed.
The guys had rented out Whitmore hall, and had even brought in a DJ.
Music pounded through giant speakers, drinks were lined up, and all around her, people were letting loose under the strobed lights.
Elena found Megan quickly enough, "Hey!"
The girl turned, "You made it!"
"Barely," Elena laughed, "Looks like things are in full swing."
Megan nodded, "It's been a madhouse, but nothing's broken yet, so there's that."
Elena smirked, "That's good."
Liam joined them then, "Look who finally got here!"
He was holding a tray of shots, "Alcohol, as promised."
They each took one.
The liquid burned as Elena threw it back, but in a good way.
"Round two?" She asked, and Liam sat the tray down on the near table, before picking up another shot and handing it to her, "Bottoms up."
She threw this one back as well, then Liam had ahold of her hand, grabbing Megan's with his other, "Let's dance!"
She followed them easily, not wanting to focus on anything else.
"This is ridiculous," Damon sighed, a few hours later.
Caroline squeezed his arm, "She's probably busy, Damon."
"So busy she can't text me back once? No, she's either avoiding me, or something's wrong."
"What do you want to do?" she asked.
Damon looked down at his phone again, "I'm gonna call Grayson. Surely he's seen her."
The man picked up on the third ring, "Hello?"
"Grayson," Damon addressed, "It's Damon. Is Elena still at the hospital?"
"At the hospital?" he sounded confused.
"For the staff party," Damon explained, a little annoyed.
There was a frown in Grayson's voice, "I left about an hour ago, when it ended. As far as I know, Elena didn't attended."
Damon blinked, "Oh...maybe I heard her wrong, then. Thanks."
He hung up, but continued to stare fixedly at the table, "She lied to me."
Caroline's brows pulled together, "Then where is she?"
"I have no idea."
Just warning you, I actually teared up writing on the next chapter!
Give ya'll something to look forward to ;)