Previously on "Cure for the Past"...
"Jealous much, Damon?" Elena loved to see him squirm. And she was just glad that they managed to get back to their playful bantering.
"Damon Salvatore doesn't get jealous." He replies in a cocky manor.
"Sure. Whatever you say." Elena winks at him and Damon just glared at her. "Oh Kyle, I'm ready to order." She yells in a sing-song voice to both tease Damon and get their waiters attention.
It was going to be a good long lunch.
It had been a couple days since Damon and Elena spent the afternoon at The Grill and they hadn't hung-out since, but they kept in contact; constantly texting each other and having phone calls. It was safe to say their friendship was rapidly growing. Finally it was the day of the mascarade ball. They had decided that they were going to go to the ball together...as friends of course.
Elena was excited about her non-date date with Damon until she remembered being kidnapped that night by Klaus' minions. She'd have to go pay a visit to Katherine again. She'd been to Katherine's a few times since the last time she hung-out with Damon. They had been talking about a strategy on how to dodge Elijah and go straight to Klaus and kill him with the white oak stake they had gone and made.
Elena threw her last dress she owned on her bed and yelled in annoyance. She didn't have anything nice enough for tonight. So she did what anyone would do.
"Come on, come on pick up." She talked into her phone as it rung for the third time. "Caroline! Hey we need to go shopping for tonight." Caroline squealed in excitement and rushed over to meet Elena so they could hit up the mall.
Elena had picked out a backless black silk dress that hit just above her knee. She pinned her hair up and put on her usual makeup, plus the fuck me heels that she borrowed, without asking, from Jenna really completed the outfit. After she was ready she headed downstairs to wait for Damon. He had once again insisted that he pick her up. However, he must have come without her knowledge because when she got downstairs there he was standing in the kitchen talking to Alaric. He turned and stared at her with wide eyes, but said nothing. Well I'm going to take that as a good sign. She thought to herself and smiled at him.
"Wow Elena you look amazing." Finally he found his voice and made his way over to her. She felt like a silly school girl going on her first date, but then again that's just the effect that Damon had on most women.
"Thank you." She replied shyly, casting her eyes down away from his direction. Stop being weird he was your boyfriend not that long ago. She looked back up at him and smirked. "Well you look pretty good there too Mr. Sexy." She said boldly and he just waggled his eyebrows.
They headed to the car and made their way to the mascarade ball.
When Damon and Elena arrived at the ball it was in full swing so they put on their masks and headed on in. As they walked through the house they bumped into Bonnie.
"Elena did you change?" Bonnie looked at her weird. "Don't get me wrong you look great, but why did you change." She continued. "And where is Stefan?"
"No I didn't change and I came here with Damon. I had no idea that Stefan was here." Elena looked at her friend like she was crazy.
Damon broke into the conversation. "I guess baby brother and evil bitch decided to grace us with their presence." Bonnie and Elena looked at him and then each other when it had clued to what he had meant.
"Oh well lets not let that ruin our night okay." Elena felt a pang of jealously hearing Damon speak of Katherine with what seemed like longing and bitterness. She turned to look at her friend. "Bonnie I'm thirsty so I'm going to head to the bar, see you around." She walked away not bothering to hear what she had to say in return and left Damon behind, not wanting to be near him right now. How could I think that he wanted to be here with me. I really wish I knew the moment he realized he loved me. I thought that it would have happened by now. In a matter of days is when he came and confessed it to me in my room. Maybe in this alternate dimension he doesn't love me. UGH! She needed a drink, one with a whole lot of booze and shot to chase it with because she was fuming.
Elena asked for a drink and downed it. All of a sudden there was a hand on her bare back. Assuming it was Damon she whipped around ready to tell him to just give her space for a second. "Damon please just-" Stefan was staring back at her. "Oh sorry Stefan."
He just smiled at her "Hey Elena, no problem." She smiled back. "I saw you and you looked upset, everything okay?" He asked in concern.
"Yeah I'm fine, just thirsty." She lied "Umm did you come with Katherine?" She really wanted to change the subject because the last thing she wanted to do was complain about Damon to her ex/his brother.
"Yeah she convinced me to get out of the house and have some fun."
"Oh! Well that's good." She faked interest.
"Yeah actually she's been different. Like the Katherine I remember from 1864. I know you probably think I'm crazy right?"
"Actually no. I think that's great, just be careful because we all know how she is." She may not be in love with Stefan, but he was still her friend and she didn't want him hurt even more.
"Well considering you're the one that dumped me out of the blue and are now spending so much time with Damon I wouldn't talk." He suddenly snapped at her.
Elena was completely thrown off and then felt bad. "Sorry that's not what I meant. I still care about you Stefan and I just want the best for you. I never meant to hurt you. I just figured being with you when I knew that it was over for me and lying to you about it would be worse than ending it." She tried sounding sincere because she was. "I hope one day we can be good friends." She smiled sadly at him.
"I'm sorry I didn't mean to snap at you. Its just hard to see you falling for him and watch him walk around the house in love with you." Stefan was being serious and that's what confused her. In love with me? Did he tell Stefan he loved me? What does he mean?
"Sorry did you say he loved me?" She asked not thinking.
"Elena I want to try and be friends, but talking about you and my brother is going to take time." Elena clued in.
"Right. I'm sorry." She needed to find Damon and talk to him. "Ummm, it it was nice talking to you Stefan. I'll see you in a bit, I have to find your b-" She cut herself off. "Bonnie. I have to go find Bonnie." With that said she scurried off to find Damon.
When she did find him he was talking to the last person she wanted him talking to. Katherine.
"Look if you want to know then talk to your girlfriend Damon. I don't have time for this, I want to go find Stefan before he drowns his sorrows and then makes out with some school girl." Katherine growled at Damon.
"Well that would be a improvement from you so you can stand to talk to me about why it is that you and Elena have been talking." Damon was pissed off.
Elena walked over to interrupt their conversation. Worried of what Katherine might tell him about their "meetings".
"Hey there you are Damon." She tried to pull him away from the conversation. "Katherine I think Stefan was looking for you." With that Katherine walked off.
Damon turned around and looked at Elena. Mad as ever. "Why have you been talking to Katherine?" He started to raise his voice. "Have you not learned that she's an evil bitch that doesn't care about anyone or whether she hurts them?" He kept getting louder and people near them were starting to look over at them, curious of what was being said.
"Don't yell at me. And that's my business." She snapped. "Are you mad that I've been talking to her or that she's here with your brother?"
"WHAT? Why the hell would I care about them. I'm here with you. I want to be here with you, not her. Don't change the subject, why are you talking to her?" Damon's face was almost completely red now.
"Look I promise that its nothing bad. Don't worry, but I can't tell you okay. Please just trust me. I know how she is believe me." Elena was pleading with him, and she could see that he was crumbling.
"Fine I'll leave it alone for now."
"Thank you." She internally calmed down knowing that he was calm and dropping the subject.
"I like jealous Elena." He winked at her.
"I am not jealous. I just-"
"You're jealous jut admit it." He teased.
"Fine I am. But only because you were in love with her up until a couple weeks ago and I'm afraid that you're.." She trailed off.
"I'm what?" His voice quieted and he moved closer to her so that they were nose to nose.
"That you're still in love with her." She looked up into his eyes as she whispered the last three words.
"Impossible." He rubbed her arm with the back of his hand.
"Why?" She asked intrigued.
"Because I love you." He whispered.
"Good." She smiled and grabbed the back of his head to bring his lips down to hers.