Since Damon had kidnapped Elena for her actual birthday – a fact that Caroline would still regularly grumble over – Elena's post-birthday-party party happened to coincide with the end of the summer term and beginning of summer break. Caroline had gone ahead and not only rented out the entire Skull Bar for what she called a birthday party of epic proportions, but turning it into a club for one night as well.

Secretly, Elena thought nothing could ever top her actual birthday celebrations where Damon had gone all out to ensure she had the most memorable day ever, but she wasn't about to say that aloud within earshot of Caroline. Besides, Elena was in a partying mood. The semester was officially over, she had done okay on her exams, even though she could have done better. But she gave herself a pass. The last 8 months had been crazy, to say the least. The fact that she'd managed to survive it all and keep her grades at a somewhat desirable level was a feat in and all of itself. She'd do better next term, she vowed.

For now though, all thoughts of school were shelved as she got ready for the belated birthday celebrations. Damon would be there to pick her up any minute. Elena reached for some comfy heels from the back of her closet and, completing the outfit, gave herself a once over. She had chosen to wear a simple gold-colored dress that came down to mid-thigh. It was a little bit sparkly and would be perfect for tonight.

Damon knocked on the door of her dorm room just as she was finishing doing her hair, choosing to wear it straight for tonight.

"Come in," she called.

Damon walked in and stopped midway. "You look hot."

She turned to him with a smile. "Thank you."

Reaching into his pocket, Damon produced a rectangular black box and held it out towards Elena. She took it with a frown. Motioning impatiently to the box, he told her without words to open it. She did.

Inside there was a very simple gold chain with an arch pendant, inlaid with some sparkly stones. "What's that?" Elena breathed, gently touching the beautiful necklace.

"What's it look like?"

"But why?"

Damon took a step closer and took the necklace from her. "Isn't it customary to receive presents on one's birthday?" he replied and turned Elena around to face the mirror.

"Yes," she answered, lifting her hair so Damon could fasten the necklace on her neck. She hadn't put on any accessories yet, intending to keep it mostly casual. "But my birthday was a week ago and also, you already gave me a present."

"The trip to Atlantic City?" Damon asked. "No, that was for me. Sorry, were you under the impression that I did that for you?" He smirked.

"Damon!" Elena laughed and rolled her eyes. He touched the pendant on her neck. Not only was it beautiful but it completed her outfit perfectly. "It's too much," she protested.

"There's no such thing," Damon replied. He let his eyes wander up and down her body in the mirror and Elena turned around to wind her arms around his neck.

"At least tell me those stones are not real."

"Okay," Damon easily agreed, "they're not real."

Elena shook her head at him. "Liar."

"Just be glad I didn't buy you a car," Damon commented.

Since she sent her car to Jeremy, she hadn't gotten around to buying a new one and was making do by either borrowing Caroline's or Damon's.

"You are not buying me a car, Damon!" she cautioned him. "Not for this birthday or any other, got it?"

Damon nodded. "Got it. But I swear to god, if you don't get a car soon, your Christmas present will be a bitch to fit under the tree."

"Or Christmas!" Elena hurried to add. "You're not buying me a car for Christmas either. Promise!"

"Too late."

"What do you mean too late?"

"I mean, we already made a deal concerning no cars as birthday presents. I agreed to said deal. You can't go and change the rules or add stipulations afterwards."

"Damon."

He ignored her and walked to the door, pulling her with him by the hand. She pulled on his arm to hold him back.

"Thank you," she said, stepping into his embrace. She touched the necklace. "I love it."

They paused before entering the bar; the party inside seemingly in full swing, the sound of partying guests spilling into the street.

"Wait," Damon said, holding her back. "In case I don't get to do that later." He leaned in and touched her lips with his. Elena released a small content sigh at the contact which made Damon pull her closer. Her hands slipped into his hair just as his tongue slipped into her mouth. Something in her belly swooped happily and she pulled back from the kiss but still clung to Damon.

Mouth pressed to his ear, she breathed, "I love you."

"I love you too." He kissed her neck and took a step back, breaking the embrace. "Don't fill up your dance card too much, alright?"

"Don't worry," she replied. "I got you penciled in for every other dance."

"Only every other?" he complained as he held the door open for her.

The minute they stepped inside, Elena was enveloped by a swarm of partygoers. They were pulling her in all kinds of different directions and, most regrettably, away from Damon. She tried to hold onto his hand but he gave her a gentle squeeze and let her be pulled away into the melee.

Damon spotted Stefan at the bar and beelined towards him. "What did Caroline threaten you with to make you come here?" he asked his brother while waving the bartender over.

"Nothing," Stefan replied. "She still refuses to talk to me."

"Ohh," Damon drawled. "So, that's why you're here." Damon nodded in understanding. "I say wait till she's got a few drinks in her and then make her talk to you."

Stefan shrugged, desperate enough at that point that he even considered taking his brother's advice.

"Apropos drinks," Damon remembered. He caught the attention of the bartender and pulled him in when he was close enough, staring into his eyes, making sure he got his focus. "See our birthday girl over there?" Damon asked and the bartender nodded slowly as he was being compelled. "She likes fruity cocktails. Make sure she's got one at all times. Oh, and get her a glass of water every time you bring her a fresh drink. Understood?" He let the guy go and noted with satisfaction that he immediately got busy preparing a drink for Elena.

Stefan watched with a shake of his head. He thought about making a joke about Damon being completely whipped, but then he caught sight of Caroline and decided to shut up. He didn't have a ground to stand on.

The evening turned into night and Damon begrudgingly had to give it to Caroline. She did know how to throw a memorable party. There were games – a blind tasting of alcoholic beverages, the mandatory beer pong – except, Caroline's version was played with pink champagne, a round of dirty 'never have I ever', Jell-O shots, and plenty more. People were definitely having fun but most importantly Elena was having the time of her life and that was all Damon cared about.

When he first spotted Liam among the partying crowd, he couldn't help but follow him with his eyes, despite knowing that neither was Elena interested in the guy, nor was he real competition. It wasn't even that Damon was jealous; he simply didn't like the walking, talking reminder of how close he got to losing the love of his life. But he needn't have bothered. Elena made sure to check in with Damon regularly. She pulled him over to her circle of study buddies, introducing everyone, forced him to play a party version of truth or dare with her friends, and demanded to dance with him whenever she felt woozy from all the alcohol. They would hit the dance floor until her head felt clear again and she could resume the fun games; at which point the circle began anew.

"You haven't told her," Bonnie said, sidling up to Damon as he sat in a far corner, watching Elena and her friends bend over and clutch at each other, laughing about something.

Damon didn't bother to pretend like he didn't know what she was talking about. "No, I have not," he said, morosely.

Bonnie nodded. She really didn't have much to add to that.

"I'm not being selfish."

"I didn't say anything."

Still, Damon felt the need to explain himself. "I wanted to tell her. But she was already so frayed because of the finals. And then once that was over, her birthday was coming up. I didn't want to put this on her shoulders. I wanted her to enjoy turning 21 without the burden of facing a life-altering decision."

"You don't need to explain yourself to me, Damon. I told you – it's up to you. I'm not getting involved."

"Except I'm doing it all wrong. I'm using the same reasoning my brother did; making the same excuses."

"What do you mean?"

"When he kept things from her, when he didn't tell her shit – it was always for her own good. Because he knew better, because he wanted to protect her. I vowed I wouldn't do the same mistakes. But I am. God, I'm an idiot. Tell me I'm an idiot."

"You're an idiot."

"I know," Damon cried. "I should have told her the same night you gave it to me. Now I've made it worse."

Bonnie didn't have anything to reply to that. She took a pull from her beer, staying quiet.

"It's your fault, you know?" Damon exploded next to her. "I'm going to lock this damn thing away and forget it ever existed, just so you can share the burden of keeping it secret from Elena."

Bonnie nodded, indulging his rant. Sometimes, you just needed to let Damon spent himself. She had learned that the hard way back in 1994. "Are you done?" she asked instead, regarding him calmly.

"Yes."

"You'll tell her when it's time." And that was that.

Damon glanced at her sideways and turned his hand that was resting on the table between them palm up. She smiled at him and placed her hand in his, both squeezing gently before letting go and sharing a smile.

"Why are you sitting here all alone while your girlfriend is over there?" Bonnie asked eventually.

"Needed a break. There's only so much drunk tweens I can take before I want to compel them all to volunteer their jugular."

"Elena looks happy," Bonnie commented with a smile.

Damon nodded. "She does. She is." He watched Elena from across the room. Her head was thrown back, she was laughing so hard at something. Damon wanted to go over there and steal her away from her friends. He glanced at his drink. Once he finished it, he was going to do just that.

In the meantime… "Are you?" he asked Bonnie.

"What?"

"Happy. Are you happy?"

"Sure," Bonnie replied. "Nobody wants to kill me right now, at least last I checked. I have my friends. I am back among the living. Yes. I'm happy."

"I mean," Damon implored, "where is Little Gilbert? Why is he not here to escort you to this shindig of the year?"

Bonnie looked down at her hands. "I… I'm… It's…" She looked up at Damon and huffed a laugh. "We talked. On the phone. I asked him not to come back, at least not for me. I don't think there's a future for us."

Damon raised both eyebrows but didn't comment. Instead, he said, "Great. Now that we have Kai stashed in another prison world and Lily has been quiet for a while, maybe it's time we find a Mr Bon-Bon."

Bonnie groaned. "No, Damon. You are not playing matchmaker."

"Come on," he cajoled. "Take a look around. Pick someone. Anyone. If he turns out to be immune to your natural charms, I'll just compel him to love and adore you forever."

"Don't you dare! Leave it be, Damon, I'm serious."

"Booh." Damon pouted. "You're no fun. Glad that hasn't changed."

Bonnie reached out to slap his chest but he caught her hand and pulled her up in one motion. "At least dance with me," he said, not giving her the option to say no. He pulled her to the dance floor where he twirled and dipped her to the fast-paced beat until she was dizzy.

Laughing and breathless she eventually told him, "Go bother your own girlfriend. I'm a mere human and I can't keep up with you."

Instead of leaving Bonnie, Damon's eyes scanned the room and made contact with Enzo. Wordlessly, he motioned his friend closer and in a practiced move handed her over for the next dance while he himself went to follow Bonnie's advice and find his girlfriend.

"Are you having fun?" he whispered in Elena's ear, sidling up next to her as she stood in a circle of friends whom Damon didn't know by name but had probably met before. Most likely he hadn't been paying attention when Elena introduced him to her college friends.

"Yes," she replied.

"Need a drink?"

"Nope, I'm good," she replied, holding up the half-full glass of water.

"Then dance with me," he said and took her drink, placing it on a nearby table. He pulled her away, throwing an apologetic-but-not-really smile at her fellow student friends.

"Why is there glitter on your face?" Damon asked, fingers trying to smudge a spot of it on her cheekbone.

"Caroline made popcorn with glitter," Elena replied which didn't answer Damon's question at all. "It was a fun game."

"Did you win or lose?" Damon almost yelled over the volume of the music.

Elena scrunched up her face. "I don't know. But I liked it."

Damon laughed. "I keep telling her real vampires don't sparkle. But she just had to prove me wrong, huh?"

The music changed to some electronic track and Elena stepped closer into Damon's space. With both arms around the other one's neck, they smoothly moved into a sensual dance.

For the first time in her admittedly short life as a vampire, Elena felt free. Unburdened. She could do this. Being a vampire didn't have to mean doom and gloom and living with a guilty conscience. She didn't need to feel hungry all the time and neither did she need to kill people. She could feed and not hurt anyone. For the first time, she felt the heavy shroud lift. Elated, she grinned at Damon.

He swayed closer and her arms came up to naturally wrap around his neck, both their bodies moving to the beat. He looked so damn hot, all sweaty and happy, high on life and blood. Elena closed her eyes as they continued to sway to the music and let herself just feel. When he lifted their arms above their heads, Elena's eyes dropped to his lips for the briefest of moments and want surged through her like hot lava.

With a start, Elena's eyes shot open, coming back to the present. It only took her a second to orient herself. She was still on the dance floor, Damon's arms still around her, though the track playing on the dancefloor was a different one than in her memory. But the same undeniable want surged through her veins. The difference was, she could allow herself to act on it now.

"Tell me," Damon mouthed, sound swallowed by the loud beat.

Familiar with the process by now, he had probably realized what was happening before the memory finished playing before Elena's inner eye. She opened her mouth to let Damon know what she had remembered when Matt cut in.

"Is there a chance to dance with the birthday girl? I've been trying all night."

Before Damon could deny him the wish, Elena cried out, happy to see her friend, "Matt!" She nodded quickly. "Absolutely. Of course, I'll dance with you."

Damon grumbled something unintelligible but Elena ignored him as she laughed. He had no choice but to gallantly twirl her over into Matt's arms. He did however leave him with a warning, "I expect her to be returned in the same condition I'm handing her over. Buzzed, happy, and sparkly."

Matt laughed nervously and promised to do his best.

"You two look chummy together," Matt commented as he took Elena in his arms.

Elena's eyes slid to Damon. He had gone back to the bar and had her back to them. "Yeah," she could only say because there really wasn't much to add to that.

"I'm glad you two managed to work things out again."

"You are?" Elena asked, surprised.

"Sure. If only because he's insufferable when you're not together," Matt replied, attempting to lead her into a twirl but not being the accomplished dancer that Damon was, only managing to step on Elena's foot. "Oops, sorry."

Elena laughed it away. "Don't worry about it. Is that the only reason?" she wondered, not willing to lose the thread of their conversation.

"As much as I hate to admit it, you're better when you're with him, too."

"Am I?"

"You seem lighter somehow. You laugh more when you're with him. I guess I'm not really surprised. After you told me how Damon makes you feel, I always suspected you would eventually end up with him."

"We talked about it?" Up until now, Elena had been under the impression that she had always kept her feelings about Damon to herself.

"Uhm, yeah." He paused, then it dawned on him. "Is that one of the things Alaric compelled away?"

Elena nodded. "Must be." For a little while, they were quiet as they swayed to the beat. "Matt, what exactly did I tell you?"

Matt quickly recounted their talk from the evening before everything had gone to hell. "Basically," Matt concluded, "he had gotten under your skin and that you couldn't shake him; that when you're with him, he consumes you. The night before the accident, when you asked me to drive you back to Stefan, I honestly didn't get it. But I guess you needed to feel safe after all the turmoil."

Elena chuckled. "Damon is many things, but I don't think safe is the one that people would use to describe him."

"Dangerous comes to mind," Matt suggested.

"Impulsive."

"Takes unnecessary risks," Matt continued to list, "gambles with other people's lives."

"Throws himself completely into his convictions, loves recklessly, is not afraid to be wrong," Elena countered with some more.

"You got it bad," Matt laughed at her. "There's no going back for you, huh?"

Elena huffed a laugh. "He's my forever."

"I'm glad you're happy," Matt said, "but I should probably let you go now."

"Huh?" Elena wondered why. They had only been dancing for a few minutes.

With a side glance to the bar where Damon was drinking, Matt replied, "Your boyfriend keeps throwing murderous looks at me, Elena."

Elena spun them around to check for herself and laughed out loud. "I'm afraid that's entirely my fault. I had just remembered something but didn't get to tell him before you came over. It's okay. He'll survive."

"You got your memories back?" Matt asked, eyes bugging in surprise.

"Not everything. But things have been steadily coming back for a while now." At Matt's perplexed stare, Elena said, "You didn't know?"

Matt shook his head.

"I'm so sorry, Matt. I should have said something. God, I'm a terrible friend. I was a terrible girlfriend and now I'm an even worse friend."

"Hey, Elena. Elena," he said again when she wasn't listening. "It's okay. To be fair, we haven't really hung out much lately."

"That's also my fault," Elena said. "I'll catch you up on everything, promise. We'll talk."

"It might take a while. Got any plans for summer?" Matt asked.

"I'm moving back into Damon's place for the summer break, so no excuses."

"Looking forward to it."

Elena slipped into the bathroom after finishing her dance with Matt. She was hot and sweaty and desperately needed to freshen up. While splashing some cool water onto her face, the door opened and Jules, one of Elena's biology lab partners, stepped inside. Elena smiled at her in the mirror.

"Elena," Jules exclaimed. "Have I wished you a happy birthday already?"

Elena laughed. "You have."

"Okay, good. That's good." Jules nodded.

"Are you drunk?" Elena asked with a critical gaze.

"No," Jules waved her worries away. "Just buzzed enough to not care about making a fool of myself on the dance floor. Oh, by the way, your boyfriend's freaking hot."

Elena laughed at that and Jules added, "Where can I find one of those?"

Elena, caught off guard, didn't know what to respond to that and settled on, "He's sort of one of a kind."

"Well, you're lucky," Jules continued while refreshing her make-up. "Consider me and all the other girls jealous. Does he have a brother?"

"I think Caroline has dibs on his brother," Elena replied with a smile, thinking of her two friends who were still traipsing around each other, neither willing to make the first move.

"Ooh," Jules pulled a face, having met Caroline several times. "I don't want to cross that."

Elena thought it was a wise choice. "Better you don't."

"What about a cousin? Nephew? Distant uncle? I'm not picky."

"None that I know of."

"Honestly," Jules mused, "by now I'd settle for a guy who can hold a conversation without his eyes checking out the rest of the room for better prospects. Guys are pigs. Not yours, though. Sorry," she quickly amended. "He's only got eyes for you. Have I mentioned how lucky you are?" Jules hiccupped. "Oops. Maybe I am a little drunk."

Elena took her arm. "Maybe we'll go get you a water, huh?"

After making sure Jules was taken care of, Elena went to find Damon. He wasn't at the bar anymore, but she quickly spotted him off to one side, standing in a small circle with Stefan and Alaric.

She snuck up on him from behind and wound her arms around his middle, hooking her chin over his shoulder, thanks to her heels.

"Hey," he greeted her, turning his head and kissing her temple, "everything okay?"

"Yep," Elena replied. "Don't mind me. Whatever you were talking about, carry on." She really just wanted to be close to Damon.

Stefan and Ric exchanged a look and excused themselves a moment later. Elena frowned. "Sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to interrupt."

Damon pulled her around for a real embrace and she melted into his hold. "Wasn't important." He studied her face. "Want to go home?"

Elena relaxed further into his arms and nodded, releasing a huge yawn. "I am beat."

As they were approaching her dorm, Elena said, "Thank you for the best birthday ever."

Damon chuckled. "That was all Caroline. I had nothing to do with it."

"I didn't mean tonight," Elena replied.

Damon stopped and gazed at her face. He leaned in for a tender kiss. "You're welcome."

They pulled away from each other and continued walking, making slow progress. Elena was so tired, her legs buckled when she took the first flight of stairs. Damon caught her and unceremoniously swung her into his arms. He carried her up and Elena snuggled into his chest, closing her eyes.

Suddenly, she remembered the memory she had recovered earlier tonight. "It was you. You taught me how to feed, how not to hurt people." Her eyes closed again, mind drifting off. She blamed the next thought on her exhausted state. Feeling sluggish and heavy, comfortable in the way just before sleep overcame, she wondered, was there any part of her that wasn't completely infused with Damon? She smiled at the thought. Even if she never remembered anything else, there was a comforting peace in the knowledge that he was so intricately woven into every part of her life.

"Oh, you remembered the frat party."

"I did. It came back when we were dancing earlier." Elena was quiet for a second, going back to the memory. "I thought you were going to kiss me."

"I wanted to," Damon admitted, remembering.

"I'm glad you didn't."

"Why?"

"Because I couldn't've stopped myself from kissing you back."

"Now I get to kiss you whenever I want." With that, Damon lowered her on her bed and pressed his lips to her forehead.

She hadn't even noticed that they had made it up to her room. Even as her eyes closed again, she mumbled, "You're not leaving, are you?"

"No," he confirmed. "But you'll be more comfortable if we take this off."

She felt him slip her heels from her feet. Then her dress was being unzipped and he gently wrangled her uncooperating form out of it. And then the bliss of a warm duvet covering her. When his weight joined her on the mattress, Elena instinctively rolled towards him and let sleep claim her.