Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries. However, I do consider the plot line as mine. Don't be a thief!

Thank you, Carol, for beta reading this chapter!

Starcrossed Lovers

Chapter 36

Elena POV

After folding the last piece of clothing and putting it in the suitcase, Elena looked at her bag. She'd been busy for almost an hour, choosing the right clothes and matching shoes. Miraculously, Paris was on. Somehow Damon convinced Rebekah to give Elena a weekend off. How he did it was a mystery.

Elena always hated packing. She knew she'd forget something, she always did. Not once had she gone away without forgetting something important. Even making herself a checklist did nothing to solve her conundrum.

Looking over her toiletries, she suddenly realized she hadn't packed her necessary medication and small things like bandages. You never know when something could happen, as such, Elena always made sure to be prepared for any emergency.

It wouldn't be the first time she got sick during a holiday or injured herself. There was nothing worse than trying to find a pharmacy in a foreign country. Then you're stuck trying to explain what you need using a translation book if you didn't know the language.

Taking some Advil out of the medicine cabinet, Elena's eyes caught sight of her birth control pills. Holy shit! Quickly grabbing them, she started counting the pills. Fourteen. No. That couldn't be right. Counting them again and again, Elena realized she'd forgotten to take at least six pills that month.

Shit. Shit. Shit! That meant Damon and she had been having unprotected sex for at least two weeks now. Elena had been so distracted by the chaos of the past month. She didn't think she'd ever forget something that important. Cursing, her hands started to shake. The birth control pills slipped through her fingers hitting the floor with a thud.

How could she forget? This couldn't be happening. Damon didn't want children. What if she really was pregnant? She didn't want him to feel obligated to stay with her. He'd end up hating her, blaming her for ruining his life. Tears welled up in her eyes as she desperately tried to control the raging emotions coursing through her. What on earth was she going to do?

Scared and confused, Elena let herself sink down on her knees and wept.

After calming down and giving herself a mental pep talk, Elena decided she had to tell Damon about her suspicion. He deserved to know she'd forgotten to take a few of her birth control pills. If she was indeed pregnant, they would have to find a way to deal. One thing Elena knew for sure, if she was pregnant, she was keeping the baby. No way she could go through an abortion after longing to have a child for so very long.

"Damon," she called out, her voice slightly trembling. While she'd been brooding in their bedroom, Damon was preparing dinner. He was totally oblivious to the fact that Elena was having a meltdown. "Damon!" she repeated, this time a little louder and steadier than before.

A few minutes later, the door opened and Damon's head popped in. "Did you need me?" he asked, his eyebrows drawn together. Traces of flour were on his cheek. Under normal circumstances, Elena would've laughed and wiped them off, but at the moment she barely even registered the white smudges.

Not trusting her ability to form a coherent sentence, Elena simply nodded. Damon opened the door a little wider and stepped into the room, casually drying his hands with the kitchen towel he was carrying. He looked at her expectantly, waiting for Elena to start talking. She honestly didn't know where to start.

"I need to tell you something," she said softly, her tone betraying her worry. Her heart was beating rapidly in her chest as she nervously fiddled with the fabric of her shirt. For a moment, Elena wished a huge hole would open up and swallow her whole.

Damon frowned, his eyes widening as worry took hold. "What's wrong?" he asked, concerned.

Elena bit her bottom lip, words failing her as she stared at the man she loved. The last thing she wanted was to make Damon unhappy. What would she do if he really didn't want their child? Could she stay with a man knowing he would never love their child as he or she deserved to be loved?

"Elena, you're scaring me," Damon stated, breaking the silence. "Talk to me," he demanded, apprehensively. He stepped closer, dropped the towel and lifted Elena's chin with his thumb to make her look into his eyes. "What's wrong?" he asked, repeating his earlier question.

"I don't know how to tell you this," she admitted, a single tear escaping her eye and rolling down her cheek. How could she possibly tell him? How could she explain that she might have ruined his life?

"Just tell me," Damon encouraged, his fingertips softly stroking her cheek. His eyes were filled with warmth and concern. Elena would hate to see them turn ice cold the moment she dropped the bombshell.

"I…with everything that's been going on…I forgot to take a few birth control pills. We've been having unprotected sex. There's a possibility I might be pregnant," Elena eventually admitted, looking down once the words escaped her lips. She couldn't bear to see the disappointment in Damon's eyes.

A loud gasp echoed through the room before Damon started laughing hysterically. Confused, Elena looked up to see Damon smiling widely. "You could be pregnant," he grinned, pulling her into his arms and spinning her around. "You could be carrying my baby," he stated in awe, hugging her so close, Elena was afraid she might faint.

In shock, Elena was momentarily too stunned to move. Then she wrapped her arms tightly around Damon's shoulders and started laughing as well. Spinning through the room together, Elena realized she'd never felt happier. Damon wasn't mad. He didn't think she'd ruined his life. No, instead the complete opposite happened, he was happy. Damon was deliriously happy knowing she might be carrying his baby.

Still shaking with laughter, Damon finally stopped twirling her and stared intently at her. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me, Lena," he whispered softly, tracing her bottom lip with his thumb.

Elena smiled at him, dumbfounded. His response was the polar opposite of what she'd expected. "You're not mad?" she asked hesitantly.

"Mad?" Damon repeated, sounding puzzled. "Why would I be mad?"

"I forgot to take my birth control pills. If I'm pregnant, it's all my fault. You thought we were protected," Elena explained.

Damon frowned before understanding dawned on him. Shaking his head, "Elena, I could never be mad at you for getting pregnant. I know we haven't talked about it, but It's okay with me if you want to stop taking birth control. I want to make you happy and I know how much you want to have a baby. Why should we wait?"

Her mouth hanging wide open, Elena gawked at him. "What?" she asked, totally blown away by his declaration. Her ears must be deceiving her. No way Damon would say something like that.

"I love you, Lena. I was afraid to show my feelings for a long time, I no longer want to. I want to start our future together, that includes having a family of our own," Damon proclaimed.

Tears started to roll freely down Elena's face as she stared at Damon in pure and utter shock. "You do want to have children," she mumbled, still not believing this was really happening.

"I do," Damon confirmed, pulling Elena back into the safety of his arms and hugging her tightly. A warm feeling spread from the pit of Elena's stomach through every fiber of her body. She didn't think it was possible to be any happier, but Damon had proven her wrong. The future seemed to look brighter every day. She couldn't wait to start the next chapter of their life together.

Damon POV

Damon sighed contentedly as he watched Elena sleep peacefully beside him. She'd shocked the hell out of him when she told him she might be pregnant. He'd always thought an unplanned pregnancy was the worst thing that could possibly happen, instead, it turned out to be the happiest day of his life.

In his dreams, Damon already imagined a pregnant Elena walking barefoot in their apartment, her belly protruding. A baby, their bundle of joy created by him and the woman he loved. How could he ever believe he didn't want a family of his own? The mere thought seems so selfish now. In fact, he couldn't wait see his child, to hear its first cry and hold it in his arms. Their baby would be the perfect blend of Elena and him. It couldn't get much better.

Except if it was a little girl who looked exactly like her mother. That would make it even better. Damon always thought if he ever had a kid, he'd want a son to take over his business. Having a girl never crossed his mind. He couldn't imagine taking care of a little girl, picking out dresses and having to watch movies about princesses. It suddenly didn't sound so bad anymore.

Stefan would probably laugh his ass off if he heard Damon's thoughts. He'd always been certain that one day Damon would meet his match and he'd bid his bachelor life adieu. Damon always vehemently disagreed. Never did he imagine letting a woman getting close enough to change him. Stefan had been right all along. Damon would rather cut off his own arm than admit that out loud.

Snuggling closer to Elena, Damon closed his eyes, happy thoughts invaded his mind as he finally tumbled into dreamland.

Elena POV

First thing the next morning, Elena drove to the nearest store to buy pregnancy tests. Elena couldn't wait. She wanted to know if she was really carrying a baby inside of her womb. They were leaving for France that afternoon. She wasn't going to set foot on the plane until she knew what, if anything, was happening to her body.

After looking at all the different brands of pregnancy tests, Elena decided to just buy one of each. You could never be sure. It was her turn at the cash register. Elena blushed a little when the female clerk smiled at her knowingly. After paying for her purchase, Elena quickly left the store, practically jumping into her car. She was mortified. It wasn't like she was sixteen and buying pregnancy tests, still it felt weird.

Elena debated calling Caroline on her way home but decided against the idea. Caroline would ask too many questions. Questions Elena wasn't ready to answer.

After parking her car, she made her way to the stairs to get home and was surprised to find Damon waiting for her. "Why didn't you tell me you were going to buy pregnancy tests? I would've taken you," he said, sounding disappointed as he eyed the bag she was carrying.

Elena left their bed early, leaving Damon to sleep. Nerves kept her awake all night and she just couldn't wait any longer. "I'm sorry," she apologized softly, smiling sheepishly. "I didn't want to wake you." It was the truth. Damon looked so peaceful for once, his features soft and his breathing steady. Elena hadn't wanted to disturb him when she got up at six AM.

"Next time, wake me. I was worried when I woke to an empty bed and couldn't find you anywhere. I tried to call you, but the damn phone starting ringing in our bedroom when I dialed your number," Damon replied as he ran his hand through his messy locks.

"I'm sorry," Elena repeated, looking down at the floor. Honestly, she hadn't even realized she left her phone. She'd been too distracted about whether or not she's pregnant to think clearly.

Sighing deeply, Damon shook his head. "It's okay," he said softly, warmth returning to his eyes as he took another deep breath. "I was just worried." Elena bit her bottom lip and nodded. She should've left a note. Now she'd worried Damon needlessly. What a great start of the day. Ugh.

"Let's find out if we're having a baby," Damon grinned. He held out his hand and Elena took it, sighing softly as Damon squeezed it with reassurance. He knew her well enough to know she was freaking out and was trying to calm her. If she wasn't so damned anxious she probably would've jumped into his arms.

"How does this work?" Damon asked, pulling a few tests out of the sack she was carrying.

"I pee on the stick, wait two minutes and then we'll know. Two red stripes means I'm pregnant, one means I'm not," Elena explained as she opened the packages.

Damon nodded, still he took the manual out of the box and started reading. Men. Shaking her head, Elena walked to the bathroom, holding four tests in her shaky hands. Some women claimed they just knew when they were pregnant, Elena didn't understand how it was possible. She was clueless about what to expect.

Once she was done, she returned to the living room. She laid the tests on the coffee table. Those two minutes seemed endless. They both stared at the tests. In two minutes she would know if a baby was growing inside of her, a small human. It seemed unimaginable. Months ago – no hours ago – Elena still worried she'd never be a mother.

"One minute left," Damon stated suddenly, his eyes focused on the wall clock. Elena smiled softly. He was just as nervous as she was.

"What are we going to do if it's positive?" Elena asked, breaking the silence. She couldn't keep her thoughts to herself. She needed a distraction.

"We'll make an appointment with a gynecologist and turn the guest room into a baby room. We'll read a shitload of books and start picking out names," Damon replied, sounding like he had it all figured out. Elena hadn't even thought about where the baby would sleep. She realized she hadn't thought about anything other than freaking out.

"You're so calm," Elena practically accused, sounding confused. She'd thought Damon didn't want this, yet he was the one being all rational. He didn't seem nervous in the least, just excited about the prospect of having a baby.

"Freaking out won't solve anything. If the test is positive we'll make the best of it. If it's negative, we'll have another conversation about having children. We'll decide whether we're ready to have a baby right now or if we should wait another few months," Damon explained calmly, wrapping an arm around Elena's shoulder and pulling her against him.

"You really want this," Elena proclaimed, dumbfounded. Damon's reaction didn't just surprise her, it shocked the living hell out of her. Where was the man who never wanted to have children, too afraid of commitment? When and what made him change his mind?

"I want you," Damon easily replied. "And that means I need to man up and start giving you what you need. Do I want a family? Yes, but only if it's with you. You're the only woman that ever gave me a desire to settle down. You're everything I need, Lena," Damon said softly before pressing a sweet kiss to her temple.

Trying to control her tears, Elena smiled at the man she loved. Damon changed so much since she met him in Paris. In so many ways, he'd affected her deeply, but she never thought he'd love her in return. That Damon was the kind of man every father feared for his little girl. The kind of man who left a trail of broken hearts in his wake. Who would've ever thought he'd turn into this amazing mature man?

Taking another peek at the wall clock, Damon stated, "Time's up." Elena swallowed, nerves alight as she stared at the tests. Taking a deep breath, she took one of the tests from the coffee table and read the result.

A gasp left her lips as she dropped the test and started shaking her head. "What does it say?" Damon asked, sounding worried. She didn't reply, just stood up and ran to the bedroom, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Elena!" Damon called out, running after her. He wasn't fast enough though. She'd already slammed the door in his face.

You did not expect this to happen, right?! Sorry it's a little short. I tried the best I could. We're almost at the end of this story! Only one chapter + the epilogue to go. So sad!

I noticed I lost a few readers last chapter, are you guys still there?

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