Chapter 30

Elena was sitting by the rose garden the next afternoon. She had a light blue sundress on, and her hair was twisted back in a French braid. She took a deep breath breathing in the scents now that summer was here the roses were all in full bloom and smelled wonderful. She was glad they didn't trigger any morning sickness like Caroline's perfume, and, as she found out this morning, her favorite body wash.

"E?" She heard Jeremy's voice behind her and drew in another breath.

"Hey Jer. I'm glad you came." She said turning around and motioning for him to come sit by her.

"What's going on?" He asked looking concerned. "You sounded weird over the phone, where's Damon?"

"He's taking care of something mysterious in the study." She said rolling her eyes. "I wanted to talk to you alone anyway though."

"Talk to me about what?" He asked the worry in his eyes increasing.

"It's nothing bad Jer." She smiled reassuringly.

"Well out with it already." He sighed. "I understand. It doesn't make sense for me to work here when there's nothing for me to do. You don't have to make a big production out of it. I knew it was coming."

"Jeremy we're not firing you!" She exclaimed.

"Then what is going on?" He asked.

"I'm pregnant." She blurted out.

"What!" He exclaimed. "You're kidding right?"

"I wouldn't joke about that." She said giving him a hard look. "Why do you sound so…I don't know...like it's a bad thing? It's not a bad thing at all. It's a miracle."

"I'm just a little stunned…I mean the two of you haven't been together for very long." He said slowly.

"Love isn't measured in time." Elena said softly. "Damon has been the best thing that's ever happened to me and you know that."

"I know Elena. I not only know that, but I take full credit for it…it's just..."

"Wait what do you mean you take full credit?" She cut him off raising an eyebrow.

"You wouldn't have come here if I hadn't convinced you and I believe I also convinced you to stay." He reminded her.

"You know what? You're right." She smiled and nudged him. "Now because of that you're going to have a second nephew or something like that."

He chuckled a little. "I think it's second cousin."

"Oh right." She laughed.

"I'm glad you're happy and I am happy for you. I'm just worried, I mean what about Craig and the trial?" he asked.

"I'm just finding ways to not think about it too much. I'm trying to stay calm about everything." She explained.

"Okay well, I'll help you in any way I can." He said quietly.

"Please stop worrying." She begged. "Everything is going to be great. I love Damon he loves me. I'm going to be divorced soon. Jenna's filing the papers today actually. This is a baby, a little tiny miracle. It's not something to fret and worry over but something to get excited about."

"I'm always going to worry. I mean our family history. It sits with us and it's just…I don't know."

"Say it." She said locking eyes with her cousin and knowing exactly where his head was.

"No." He said.

"Yes Jer, say it once so you can hear how ridiculous and insane it sounds." She said.

"I can't." He said.

"Fine then I will." She said.

"No Elena. It's too hard on you to talk about this stuff." He begged.

"Sometimes I think it's harder on you then me, and for good reasons." She said squeezing his shoulder.

"I just feel like our family is cursed you know, and good things like this always seem to come with a price."

"Jer." She sighed.

"Forget it, I shouldn't have said anything." He said his face flushing. "You don't need me upsetting you."

"You're not; just let's talk this out for once." She said.

"Elena."

"Now Jeremy talk." She demanded.

"Fine," He sighed heavily.

"I've been freaked out from day one." He said his face breaking a little, she scooted closer.

"Since John told me about my dad and then I found you the way you were. I knew John wanted me to kill Craig. He hinted at it so many times, sort of called me a disgrace for not doing it sometimes." Jeremy admitted his eyes shamed.

Elena's heart lurched in her chest she left angry at her dad for the first time in a very long time. He really hurt her cousin much more then she realized. She didn't care about the reasons it wasn't worth his pain.

"I was so scared though, that I'd end up just like my dad. Killing someone and then getting away with it until one day it catches up with you and bam, or crash in his case, right?" He laughed dryly and Elena could only brush back tears, a huge lump in her throat prevented her from speaking.

"It was my biggest fear that's why I started studying law in school; it's why I always pushed legal action at you." He said. "Then you came here and found Damon. I wasn't alone anymore, at first I thought he wanted to kill Craig. I knew if he did, I would have to help, luckily he changed his mind. I started feeling better then, until you were taken. All this time I worried I would repeat my dad's history, and now you were gone because I didn't act sooner. I got complacent knowing you had a boyfriend with good money protecting you. If he had hurt you or killed you that night I never would have forgiven myself." Jeremy said.

"Jeremy my protection isn't your burden to bear." She finally sobbed. "It never was. I tried so hard to keep you out of it."

"That only made me more determined." He said.

"Your mom is dead because of my dad. He would want me to help you and not just because of that but because your family. Because your Elena you would do the same for me." He said.

"I spent so many years freaked history would repeat for me…and then when you told me just now. I just had a terrible thought that what if it's you who's going to repeat the past. What if you end up like Isobel, and I know it's terrible. I didn't want to say it." He looked away and shuddered.

"I knew what you were thinking already." She sighed. "I thought it too for a half a second at one point, but Jeremy I'm twenty-five and healthy, Isobel was fifteen. Your dad was still in med school at the time. My doctor has years of experience. I'm not giving birth in a basement. I read the real report John wrote not his embellished version. What happened to her was an accident and she bled out to fast to be saved. That's not going to happen to me in a hospital with several doctors around."

She frowned surprised she actually said that and meant it. She took a breath and continued.

"I'm not going to end up like Isobel and you're not going to end up like Grayson. But, for the record, it was just as much of an accident as your parent's car crash. Your dad did not kill my mom, he just couldn't save her. " Elena said for the first time ever. It was almost as if a veil had lifted over her eyes. Soothing Jeremy's fears seemed to just wash away her own.

"Elena you've gotten so strong. " He said looking a little awed.

"As well as right," She smiled nudging him.

"Yeah you're right." He agreed letting out a breath his face seemed to relax. "Besides it is Damon's. I'm sure he'll have an entire team of the best baby doctors in the country surrounding you."

"I wouldn't doubt that." She giggled a little.

"I'm sorry I laid that all on you." He frowned.

"I made you." She said. "It was time. I'm having a baby. Craig's going to jail, you are almost finished with school. We can't keep letting the monsters under our beds haunt us. It was time to talk it out and put it behind us. That is what both my mom and your parents would want for us. "

"Yeah I think you're right." He smiled a little.

"I still want you to come to me if you ever need anything. " Jeremy said.

"Of course," She said. "I only pushed you out of things because, I didn't want you to be hurt. I didn't realize John already hurt you so bad, put so much on you."

"He was watching out for you." Jeremy defended.

"I don't care." Elena snapped angrily. "He had no right to mess with your head right after you lost your parents."

"John is John." Jeremy sighed.

She sat silently for a moment and then finally just nodded in agreement though it did make her a little sad to do so. She decided she was going to wait on calling her dad for a few days she was a little too pissed right now.

They sat quietly for a while a new sort of peace within both of them. Jeremy's phone went off and he grimaced at the message.

"Why does Jenna care of my room is a sty? She doesn't have to open the door."

"Oh for crying out loud, clean you're room." She rolled her eyes.

"You already sound like a mom." He teased.

"I am." She rubbed her belly, which hadn't really gotten any bigger yet, but she could still sort of feel the differences in her body now.

"If it's a boy you have to name it Jeremy." He grinned.

"We'll see." She laughed.

"Hey can you do me a favor?" She asked glancing at him.

"Anything I told you that." He said.

"Can you go find out what Damon's doing? He's been locked in the study for like an hour and I know it's some surprise or something. Probably some stress free hobby he thought of, but not knowing is stressing me out so… could you go dig?" She asked giving him a pretty please smile.

"You want me to go spy on your boyfriend and wreck whatever surprise he's planning for you?" Jeremy raised an eyebrow.

"Yep," Elena smirked.

"Sure why not." Jeremy grinned.

Damon was on hold anxiously hoping he had the right place when someone knocked on the door.

"I'll be out soon Elena." He called.

"It's me can I come in?" Jeremy called.

"Yeah fine." Damon unlocked the door and Jeremy walked in and glanced at the computer.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"Hang on." Damon mouthed.

"Hello Marty, could I speak with the owner please?" Damon asked. "Oh I see do you know when she will be in?"

"Oh...is this the same Bennett Burger that used to be on 53rd Street?" he asked.

"I'm sorry I have the wrong place." He hung up and sighed.

"You're trying to find Bonnie?" Jeremy asked his eyes wide.

"Hush." Damon snapped.

"She's still outside." Jeremy said sitting down at the computer. "Any luck?"

"If they are still in business they moved. The old location is a bar now and the guy said he bought it from the bank." Damon said. "I have one other place to try."

"If they bought it from the bank that means it foreclosed." Jeremy said.

"No whoever bought it from the Bennett's, foreclosed. I found out that much. I think they sold and moved out of town after Craig tracked their phone." Damon said.

"That makes sense." Jeremy said.

"Have you tried to just look up a Bonnie Bennett in Chicago?" Jeremy asked pulling up white pages. He typed in her name and found only three matches.

"I did….not." Damon said sheepishly pulling his phone back up to call.

He dialed the first number a man answered. "Hello?"

"Hello, can I speak with Bonnie Bennett?" Damon asked.

He glanced at Jeremy and his eyes narrowed when saw him searching pools for sale online.

"Who is calling?" The man asked.

"My name is Damon Salvatore. " He said. "I need to talk to her about an old friend of hers, Elena Gilbert."

"Just leave Bonnie alone, okay? She's not going to help you people hurt her friend." The man snapped.

"What are you talking about?" Damon asked. "I'm Elena's boyfriend."

"You are? Oh that's right, Salvatore they mentioned your name on the news. You were the one that got the gun away." He said. "I'm sorry …I'm Luke, Bonnie's boyfriend. The defense attorneys have been harassing her. I thought you were with them."

"The defense attorneys?" Damon asked. "Why?"

"They want Bonnie to speak on Craig's character. They want her to say she never saw him hurt Elena and never thought he was a danger, on and on. It's sickening. Bonnie's been wanting to look Elena up, but she was afraid it might hurt her." Luke said. "She didn't want anyone following her there and harassing Elena too."

"They can't get near her until the trial, which is why I'm calling. This is a lot and Elena has a lot of support here, but nothing would mean more than her best friend right now. If she could come and visit for a while maybe until the trial is over. I'll give her free room and board here and I would pay for her flight and yours too, if you want to join her." Damon offered.

"That's awfully generous." Luke said. "I couldn't take the time way from work, but I'm sure that Bonnie will be happy to come. She's outside I'll go run it by her; can you hold for a second?"

"Yeah, definitely." Damon nodded feeling hopeful.

Damon let out a little breath, so Craig's attorneys were playing dirty, he thought feeling as angry as Luke had first sounded on the phone.

"You found her that's awesome." Jeremy smiled he had some massive pool pulled up and was reading the reviews.

"What are you doing?" Damon asked.

"Creating a cover story," Jeremy said.

"What?" Damon asked narrowing his eyes.

"Elena sent me in here to find out what you are up to. I can't give away this surprise. So, I'm going to tell her you bought her a pool." Jeremy grinned. "This one is awesome."

"I'll pick it out." Damon said smirking a little at the kid's tenacity.

Jeremy ignored him and continued to sort through the different images.

"Hello?" A woman's breathless voice came on the phone.

"Is this Bonnie?" Damon asked.

"Yeah...oh my gosh, Elena you saved her life. I can't thank you enough." Bonnie cried.

"Actually I distracted him, but Elena knocked him out." Damon said.

"I heard that too. I can't believe it, good for her. I can't believe he found her, and she has a boyfriend? She was so lonely when I last talked to her. Which only hurt her, I felt so terrible." Bonnie was trailing off she took a breath seeming to compose herself.

"Is she okay can I talk to her?" Bonnie cried into the phone.

"I kind of hoped to surprise her." Damon said. "I don't know if Luke said anything."

"He did and I'm on the next flight." She said anxiously "I've been so worried for so long. I've missed her so much."

"She's okay now." Damon assured her.

He pushed Jeremy off the computer and got a flight booked for Bonnie that same night. She'd been in by eleven and here no later than midnight. Jeremy agreed to pick her up and drop her off so Elena wouldn't figure anything out. He couldn't wait to see the look on Elena's face.

"That was a really great thing to do." Jeremy said.

"She lives with two guys, she needs another woman around full time and she misses Bonnie so much. I know this will help keep her calm." Damon said.

"Elena told you right?" Damon asked.

"Yeah and congratulations," Jeremy smiled. "I had a little freak out, but I'm good now."

"You didn't stress Elena out did you?" Damon asked his face tensing.

"No, she's the one that forced me to talk about our parents. She said we had to stop avoiding and we didn't, we talked and she was assuring me. In the end she said it was an accident and my dad didn't kill her mom." Jeremy said.

Damon's eyes widened he knew having that tribute to Isobel was changing Elena's thoughts on things. It brought her some perspective and closure. He would see her working through and getting past this stuff more every day. It made him just amazed and proud. He had been through much less in his life and acted out far longer than he should have. His girlfriend just never seemed to stop reminding him of what an angel she was.

"I'm glad you guys were able to talk that stuff out." Damon said.

"It's time to move on." Jeremy agreed.

Damon started thumbing through pool images.

"Look at the diving board on that one." Jeremy pointed.

"No diving boards, too dangerous. " Damon said.

"Elena is not going to dive off a high board, pregnant." Jeremy rolled his eyes.

"I know but someone else could dive in and land on her or something." Damon shrugged.

"Whatever, " Jeremy smiled. "I'm glad you're so careful, how about just the pool then?"

"I don't know if this is going to look right on the estate," Damon frowned.

"Maybe you can find something that doesn't look like a pool. Like stone edges or something." Jeremy shrugged.

"I suppose if I put it on the west side it won't be near the gardens, but then we'll have all the weekend guests coming over to use the pool." He thumbed his fingers on the desk.

"Just get a fenced in private pool just for the long-term guests then." Jeremy suggested. "It's not like anyone's actually going to walk all the way over the west side anyway. They stop at the gardens or the rose garden in the center. People think of the other side as like your house, they don't go over there."

"Yeah I really like how that worked out." Damon agreed.

"How about this one?" Jeremy pointed to a large kidney shaped pool that was about thirty two feet long and sixteen feet wide. Damon looked at it for a while the price was steep, but he liked the look of it. He had more than enough room on the west side. His dad would kill him unless he just paid for it out of pocket.

"How did I let you rope me into this?" He groaned pulling out his credit card and clicking on order now.

Elena felt good after her talk with Jeremy. He told her the secret about the pool before he left. She was kind of excited about having a little pool here. She thought about picking one up if she ever got out to a mall anyway.

It would nice to have a pool to sit in on hot days or even just dip her feet in. She could even bring it over to the rose garden with her. She kind of had a feeling there had to be more to this then just a pool though. She couldn't help but wonder what else was going on. Jeremy was in the study with Damon for a long time.

Damon made chicken pasta for dinner and she ate two platefuls and kept them down. Neither breakfast or lunch had gone so well and she was pretty grateful. Damon decided to keep a note pad of what foods she could handle and what she couldn't. Elena thought it was really sweet, but Rick just thought it was weird. Although when Elena asked for a pickle of all things, which she always hated, on the side of her pasta, Rick shrugged and ate one too. Between Damon tracking her food and Rick mimicking her weird cravings, meals were amusing to say the least.

She took a warm bath after dinner and changed into her comfy flannel shorts and Damon's favorite tee shirt, well her favorite tee shirt now. Luckily, he had lots of them. She curled up in bed to read and ended up falling asleep. It was nearly eleven thirty when she woke up yawning and stretching.

"Hey sleepy head." Damon was lying next to her; she smiled softly and turned to face him.

"Did you nap with me again?" She asked.

"Just for a little while." He brushed her hair back from her face, "I set something up for you. Come with me."

"Okay." Her heart skipped a beat, wondering what he had planned for her.

He led her downstairs to the movie room where it was decked out with popcorn and a variety of beverages and a bunch of candy. He also had blankets and pillows out, it looked like it was set up for a slumber party, there was even a small pile of new movies on the couch to choose from. She eyed up the newest Kate Hudson chick flick and a couple of other really girly movies underneath it. She raised her eyebrows. He loved to dote on her and cater to her, but to subject himself to an entire a night of chick flicks? Even for Damon that seemed a little extreme.

"This is so cute, and surprising." She said picking up one of the movies, the case was actually pink. "We're doing a movie night?"

"No you are." He kissed her forehead.

"By myself?" She asked.

"Not exactly," He smiled glancing at his watch; the doorbell rang as if right on cue.

"Who is here this late?" Elena asked her eyebrow furrowed.

Damon just grinned and followed Elena as she got up and started towards the door.

She looked back at him confused, but his face was giving away nothing this time.

She walked to the door and swung it open. Her big brown eyes widened and grew wet immediately and her heart jumped into her chest when she stared at her best friend. Her jaw opened in complete shock. It was her she looked older and even more beautiful then she remembered, but it was her. Bonnie.

"Elena." Bonnie gasped; her green eyes full of emotion as tears slid down her cheeks.

"Bonnie." Elena sobbed throwing her arms around her best friend and squeezing her tight.