Thanks to annemarie delacour and Rachael for the reviews! They really help me to keep up with my writing! :-)

Three months had passed since Christmas and it had been three months since she started meeting Will in secrecy. She really didn't understand why she kept on coming to see him, but she was there like clockwork every Thursday night. Those were the nights when she had to 'work late' at the office.

'I wish I was at the office. At least it's warm there,' she thought to herself.

Instead, she was freezing her ass off, sitting on a park bench in the winter. She was looking at her shoes trying to think of warm thoughts when she heard shoes crunching in snow.

"Hey."

She looked up to see Will standing in front of her. His hands were in the pockets on his black jacket. His blonde hair hung over his deep blue eyes. He still looked like the man she had married so long ago.

"Hey," she said in reply.

He sat down next to her on the bench and put an arm over her shoulders. She sighed deeply. It felt so good to be in his arms again. They had brought her peace during a very hard time in her life. If she could, she would just dissolve right into him.

Then she remembered why she had come to the meeting that night. Gavin. He had become very suspicious and protective of her since Will showed up again. She had lied to him time and time again about the meetings. It was different now than previously, because she could sense his distrust in her. He knew they were drifting apart. The worst part was she had heard a phrase go through his mind once. 'Once a cheater, always a cheater.' Even though she wasn't cheating, since she had never even kissed Will again, she felt horrible.

"Will, we have to talk," she said as she made herself sit up straight and look directly in his eyes.

"Yes, Gena, what is it?"

"I can't meet with you anymore. I don't want to ruin anything that I have with Gavin."

"But you're not," he interjected. "We're not doing anything wrong. Is it a crime to just be with company you enjoy?"

"No, but its wrong when you have to lie to your significant other about it! I don't want to hurt anyone. Don't you care about what Zoe feels?"

"Of course I do, Gena! I love Zoe…but I also can't help what I feel about you!"

Gena looked at him with wide eyes.

"Will…I know you still care…I mean I still care about you too, but I can't feel that way for two people at once…"

He reached for her hand and brought it up in plain view.

"Then why are you still wearing my ring? You could have had another lapis lazuli talisman made, but you're still wearing this one. Our wedding ring."

She looked down at the silver and blue ring on the ring finger of her left hand.

"I'm just used to wearing it, that's all. It's a part of my past and a part of me no matter what it symbolizes."

Will moved her chin up so that her gaze would be his.

"It symbolizes that I love you, Gena Salvatore, and I always will." He moved closer to her so that she could feel his warmth on her lips. She felt herself moving closer. She closed her eyes and there was only one person in her mind, and his eyes were brown.

Gena turned her head quickly and looked the other way. Will knew to back off.

"Will, I can't do this anymore. Seeing you again…it just brings back these old feelings that I haven't felt for a long time. But, I'm happy with Gavin. He's the first person that's made me completely whole since…well, since you. I don't want to do anything wrong. I want the relationship to be right."

Will lowered his head.

"I know," he said. "That's o…."

"But," she said, "I do want to have you in my life as well. I just think that, if we see each other, we should have Gavin and Zoe along with us."

Will finally raised his head up to meet her eyes.

"Ok, Gena. That sounds like a deal to me."

Elena was sitting on her soft bed flipping through her photo album. There were a bunch of pictures of her and her friends at Robert E. Lee High School in 1991. A picture of her getting crowned Homecoming Queen during her Senior year. One of her and Stefan cuddled up together in his room.

She continued to flip through the book reveling in her past. There she was, in her cap and gown, receiving her degree in journalism in 1997. Then there was a photo of Stefan in his cap and gown getting his degree in International Business. A few pages later were where her wedding pictures from 1997 began. There were photos of her and Stefan saying their vows, dancing, cutting the cake, feeding each other, and posing with their wedding party. Those pictures represented one of the happiest days of her life…or her second life as a human. The only thing that dampened the event was the absence of her aunt and sister.

Elena smiled to herself and looked up. It was then that her eyes met the mirror on her nightstand across from the bed. She looked down at the pictures again and looked at the way she looked. She hadn't changed at all. It had been eleven years since she left Fell's Church and she looked exactly the same. There were no changes that would identify her real age of 29. It was a phenomena she just couldn't understand. Even Stefan was trying to figure out why she wasn't aging externally. Only time would tell.

Elena remained seated on the bed as Stefan entered the room with a suitcase.

"I'm going back to Italy," he said briefly. "There's a lead about Alaric and I'm going to go follow it."

That had been the third time in the passed month that he left to either follow a lead or do business. He would leave for days at a time, which left Elena completely alone for days at a time. She was used to him going on business trips, but recently, it was trying her patience.

"Stefan, can I at least go with you?"

"No, it's too dangerous, Elena. You're better off here," he said as he bent down to kiss the top of your head. "Don't worry, sweetie. I'll be back soon."

She stood up and strode across the room.

"And what if you're not," she cried out. "What if something happens and you have to leave me? Don't you remember what it was like when we were apart? Don't you remember how it was when I was…"

Her eyes filled with tears and she sank to the floor. Stefan's arms were around her immediately to comfort her.

"Yes," he said sadly, "I remember what it was like. Oh, how I missed you and everything about you. Maybe…maybe we've been taking this second…or third chance for granted. I mean, we accomplished a lot that we wanted to do, but…I had almost forgotten that there was a time when you weren't around."

His arms tightened more firmly around her.

"I'm sorry, Elena. I'm so sorry."

Elena looked up at him and gave him a kiss.

"It's ok, Stefan. I just want to be near you."

"I know. That's why I'm not going. I want to make sure I'll be around with you for a long time."