Pink had never been her favorite color.
She couldn't think of time she'd despised it more as she sat with her back against the bathtub in Damon's bathroom staring down at the deceptively cheerful pink lines on the white stick in her hands.
Thankful she was the only one home, she let out a strangled sob. What was she going to do?
First things first, she gathered up the offending stick and all the other evidence of what she had been doing and shoved it all into the plastic sack from the store. She pushed herself up off the floor and was headed to the trash when she backtracked to one of the spare rooms. She shoved the bag under the mattress and headed back towards Damon's room. Knowing Damon would be home soon and would know where to find her she laid down on the bed and promptly got back up running for the bathroom as nausea took over.
That's where Damon found her when he made his way up the stairs, hunched over the toilet in his bathroom.
"Elena, I thought you were feeling better," he said softly as he took a washcloth out of the cabinet and wet it with warm water. He wrung out the excess water and plopped down on the floor next to her. Silently he ran the cloth over her face. After a few minutes she sat herself up, leaning on his shoulder.
"I thought so too," she said, sounding defeated.
He continued to run the washcloth over her forehead and cheeks for a few quiet moments and then he moved to stand. He bent down and picked her up easily. "Let's get you back to bed." He said as he moved towards the bedroom.
As he settled the blankets over her, Elena curled up in a ball. She was tired. She was weak. She was afraid. And for some reason, she knew Damon didn't recognize any of it. She rolled to her side and closed her eyes.
Damon set the cloth on the nightstand. He readjusted the covers and left the room, intent to call Ric and find out just what was going on.
Later, Elena crawled out of the bed and slinked around the mansion searching for Damon. Not finding him, she grabbed her bag and headed out to the store.
Alaric was surprised to see Damon at the school that evening. Without any preamble, Damon blurted out to the man. "What's wrong with Elena?"
Alaric looked shocked for a moment. A little surprised that Damon had noticed anything at all. He sighed and put down the paper he was grading, "There's always something going around the school, Damon. I'm sure its a virus."
"She's been sick for weeks, Alaric, a virus would have gone away." Damon said forcefully, "She needs to go to a doctor."
Alaric looked up to the distressed vampire unsure what exactly he was expecting him to do. "If Elena is sick enough, she'll go to the doctor."
"You're her father, Ric, for all intents and purposes. MAKE her got to the doctor." Damon said as he pressed his finger into Ric's chest.
Ric almost laughed. "Damon, by now, you should know, NO one makes Elena do anything."
Unable to accept defeat, Damon stood up. "It's gone on long enough, Alaric; she will go to the doctor."
Shoving the bag of her purchases inot her back pack, Elena put it into the passenger seat. She restrained her thoughts as she put the car in drive and head for the boarding house.
She was surprised to see Damon's car still gone from the driveway. Grasping her car keys in her left hand and reaching for her bag with her right, Elena maneuvered herself out of the car.
Unlocking the door, and walking in, out of habit, she called to see if anyone was home. After garnering no attention, she made her way up to Damon's bedroom and went directly to the bathroom, locking the door behind her. She placed her backpack on the counter and sat down on the toilet. Closing her eyes briefly and over thinking everything she stood up. Carefully she opened her backpack and pulled out the plastic bag emptying its contents in the sink. Opening each box and skimming the directions, Elena let herself breathe for a moment before continuing her mission.
Damon didn't know if he should be happy or concerned to see Elena's car still in the driveway. He only hoped she was feeling better.
He briefly glanced in the living room before making his way upstairs. He walked into his bedroom knowing Elena was there. He found her sitting on the bed looking upset and resigned to something.
"Elena?," he whispered now concerned.
She turned to face him then. "Damon,"
He made his way to stand in front of where she sat on the bed. "How are you feeling?"
"Better, I'm" she sighed and lay down on the bed, "Better."
Damon nodded and sat on the bed. He ran his hand across her forehead and cheek as if to check for fever. "I think," he paused, "You need to see a doctor."
"I don't," she said as she turned her head to make better eye contact.
"Elena," he started to protest.
"I'm not sick, Damon." She said as she turned away from him, "I'm pregnant." Then she laughed slightly.
"That's not funny, Elena." Damon said as he turned her back towards him.
"Wasn't meant to be," she said as she hugged her arms to herself.
"I've told you before, Elena, vampires can't procreate." He sighed.
Surprising him, Elena sat up on the bed and moved to the edge. She ran to the bathroom and stepped into the bedroom again before Damon had a chance to realize what she was doing.
Damon watched as she held a white stick in her hands, several of them in fact, "A plus sign, positive." She said as she threw the stick in his direction.
"2 pink lines, positive," another hit the floor next to his right foot.
"And the Coup de grace of your vampires cannot have babies defense," she said as she walked closer to him, "nice black word here," she pointed to the end of the stick, "Pregnant."
She made her way back on the bed and curled up. She looked at the shock on his face. "There are 10 more in the bathroom calling you a liar, if you want to see them."