Sheets of rain clouded her vision as Elena ran down the uneven cobblestone street. What she was running from, she couldn't be sure-but she knew she was running out of time. Elena turned the corner and hid in an empty alleyway to catch her breath. The wet air was crisp, and her heavy breaths came out like puffs of smoke. She heard footsteps approaching, and she took off again. Her aching legs carried her for another few blocks until Elena felt her body collide with another. Her screams were cut off by a large hand, and her eyes locked with piercing blue ones.

Elena abruptly woke up in a cold sweat, causing her sleeping boyfriend, Stefan, to roll over and groan. Her hand fumbled around her nightstand in search of her phone. She managed to find it and brought it to her face to check the time. Ugh, she woke up a minute before her 7 a.m. alarm.

Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, or lack thereof, Elena got out of bed and stretched out her aching muscles. Strangely enough, it really did feel like she ran five miles like in her nightmare. She stepped into her warm shower and sighed as the hot water ran down her skin.

Her thoughts shifted to her nightmare and those eyes. Elena had dreamt about those eyes nearly every night these past two weeks, and it was beginning to drive her insane. What did her dreams mean? Who were those blue eyes attached to? She had never seen eyes so blue…

Elena shook the thoughts out of her mind and hurriedly got ready for work. She worked at a little bookshop that had sat at the same corner of her tiny hometown for what felt like a million years at this point. Elena's mother was friends with the shop owner, Mrs. Jones, and had taken Elena there every week since she was born. Ever since her mom had passed, it felt like the memories of the tiny bookshop were all she had left of her.

Elena walked through the shop's front door and heard the bell jingle behind her. She was greeted by her friend, Bonnie, who was on the opening shift with her today.

"God, you look tired. What did you do, stay up all night?" Bonnie laughed.

"Ugh, is it that bad?" Elena asked as she set down her bag.

"No, it's not….that bad."

"You're a horrible liar, Bonnie. Anyway, it was the same dream as usual." She said.

"The one with the sexy eyes? Huh...strange…" Bonnie trailed off.

"It's more than that, Bonnie." She laughed. "It's like I'm running away from something…"

"You know, my Gran is into all of that hocus pocus kind of stuff. You should have her give you a reading." Her friend suggested.

"I will just to put an end to all of this, but you know that I don't believe in that sort of stuff."

Bonnie rolled her eyes at her. "You just need to have some trust. Anyway, we have work we need to do."

When it came to the end of their shifts, the two of them headed to her Gran's house so that Elena could get her reading. Sheila Bennett's home was lit by hundreds of tiny candles which seemed dangerous for its wooden walls. Crystals and other tiny trinkets cluttered shelves and tables along with worn books that looked at least two hundred years old. Bonnie led her to a back room where her Gran sat in a purple velvet armchair. Her eyes were closed, intently focused on something.

"Gran?" Bonnie asked.

Sheila Bennett's eyes snapped open, but they stayed focused on the space next to Bonnie like there was someone standing there. She then turned to Elena and motioned for her to come sit at the chair beside her.

"So child, there's been a recurring dream that's been troubling you?"

"Yes, ma'am. I'm always running, and then I run into a man with blue eyes." Elena told the older woman.

"Well...it could be a number of things...let's consult the cards first."

She brought out a deck of beautifully painted tarot cards that she shuffled through so fast that Elena could barely make out her fingers moving. Once again, Sheila's eyes were closed, and she was mumbling something under her breath.

Two cards flew out of the deck and scattered onto the old Persian rug. Bonnie picked them up for her Gran, and her and Elena looked at the old woman for an explanation.

"Let's see," Sheila started, "first we have "the lovers" card which often represents a soulmate connection.

She held up the card with the two naked figures on it for Bonnie and Elena to see.

She stared at the second card for a second, looking stumped. She showed it to the girls, and Elena gasped it surprise. It was the "death" card which depicted a skeletal knight on a horse.

"Don't worry, honey. This card rarely signifies an actual death...usually it just means something is going to come to an end." Sheila reassured her.

"What do those cards mean together?" Elena asked.

"Well, it could mean the end of a romantic relationship." She answered.

"You and Stefan are going to break up? But you guys are stronger than ever…" Bonnie started.

"No one is going to break up. I'm sorry, I have to go...but thanks Mrs. Bennett."

Elena walked out of the house a little shell-shocked. Could the cards mean that she and Stefan were going to end things soon? They seemed happier than ever…

She drove back to their shared apartment and locked the front door behind her. Elena had thought about it the entire way back and had decided that the cards were a load of crap. She was a rational person and a couple of cards were not going to determine her relationship. She loved Stefan, and that feeling was not going to go away anytime soon.

Eventually, Stefan came home from work, and they shared Chinese takeout that he had picked up. They caught up on some shows, and Elena ended up drifting off on the couch. For the first time, the dream had picked up where it had left off.

The man with the blue eyes slowly removed his hand from her mouth, making sure that she wasn't going to scream again. He looked around, making sure they were alone.

"Elena, you have to get out of here. They're coming." He said.

She wanted to ask who was coming, but she knew that they didn't have enough time. Instead, she nodded in understanding and looked at him for further instructions.

"You go ahead, I'll stay here and distract them." The man told her.

"No, Damon. I can't leave you here by yourself." She felt herself insisting.

Damon looked like he wanted to tear his dark, wet hair out at her statement. "Elena, we've been over this…"

"I know, I know. It's just that...Damon I-"

"I know." He said, cradling her cheekbone as he looked into her eyes.

He wiped away a tear that trailed down her cheek, and Elena crushed her lips hard against his. Damon sighed into the kiss before pulling away. His eyes then suddenly darted to something out of the corner of his eye.

"Elena, GO!"

Elena woke up with a start, with one thing on her mind: Damon.

Hey guys, I'm finally out of a three month case of writer's block! Just let me know if you would like me to finish "The 25 Days Of Christmas" or not since it's the middle of February; I would be happy to do so if that's something that you guys wanted. Thanks for reading!