Days passed and everyone fell into a routine. The simplicity of it felt normal. It was as if it were a regular occurrence to cook an early morning breakfast and watch as Jeremy and Rebekah shipped themselves off to school. Elena spent her days training with the Klaus or Kol, even having Stefan come to visit and join in on the training. Peace was beginning to settle, and she enjoyed the feeling.
Waking up to an earlier morning than usual, Elena slipped from bed and went for a long jog. Since her return of her vampire skills and training with the Mikaelsons, she had a desire to build up her stamina. The only thing she could do was get stronger until they were to find Finn or a map to Silas.
Running through the forest, Elena enjoyed the blossoming flowers on the trees. Spring was coming, which meant prom and graduation were soon to arrive. She ran for what felt like hours, only stopping when her legs were ready to give out, and even then, she pushed herself to walk the way home.
Slipping inside the house, Elena put on the coffee for everyone and went to shower. Quietly moving past a sleeping Elijah, she grabbed her clothes for the day before trotting to the bathroom and shutting the door. Stripping herself from her running gear, she stepped under the spray of water. The warmth of the water eased the ach of her tense, sore muscles.
Elena stayed in the shower for a while, using the peace and quiet to give herself a moment. It was in the early mornings, before anyone was awake, that she felt like she could really breathe.
She had come to the conclusion that she would transition. It probably wouldn't be a surprise for most when she decided to tell everyone - it was the logical move. If she wanted to be with Elijah and his family, if she wanted to stay with Jeremy and watch him grow up, she'd have to transition. Her only other option was dying and being a spirit on the other side watching from there., and she didn't want to do that.
In her decision to live though, she was faced with the question of what to do next. Elena had to ask herself where she wanted to go and who she wanted to be. And the best way to do that, was to ask herself what she would have done if things hadn't gone the way they did. Funny enough, it was Damon's argument with her had helped that.
Damon had once challenged her, questioning what would have happened if she hadn't saved Elijah and his family the night of the ball. And so, in asking herself that she tried to picture where she would be in her life if she hadn't gone on the run or kiss Elijah that fateful night.
It was odd to come up with all sorts of possibilities. She'd still be attending school. She'd be with Stefan and Damon, probably fighting off Klaus.
Turning off the water, she grabbed a towel and stepped out.
Things would be completely different.
Dressing, Elena took her time in doing her hair and applying some makeup. Once finished, she slipped from the bathroom and bedroom to grab some coffee. The house would be buzzing with people soon. She wanted just a few more minutes of peace.
Filling a mug with steaming coffee, she padded her way outside and sat on the porch steps.
The alternate reality she imagined for herself without the Mikaelsons seemed just as complicated, but a little more lonely. She enjoyed the family she had built for herself and loved having Elijah by her side.
Water began running and doors began to open and shut. People were up and getting ready.
Getting up from her spot and dusting off her bum, Elena took her coffee inside of the house to start breakfast. She started the morning cooking Jeremy and Rebekah eggs, toast, and chopped some fruit. She set a blood bag beside Rebekah's plate, and then left the extras on the stove for the rest of the household.
Padding her way back upstairs with more coffee in hand, Elena slipped into her bedroom, finding the mattress vacant. Curious, she poked her head into her attached bathroom. There stood Elijah in all his glory, wrapped in just a towel around his waist, shaving cream covering the cheeks of his face.
Leaning against the bathroom doorframe, she watched as he carefully moved the razor across his skin.
"You're shaving," she said surprised. He had had this 5 o'clock shadow thing going for the past few days, a dark thin layer of stumble running across the entirety of his face. While it was a bit rough and fairly unusual for Elijah's attire, she enjoyed it. It made him look younger and amazingly hot.
"I am," he said, running the razor down his face. "I have a few matters to attend to today. I shouldn't be too long – probably home near dinner."
Elena watched him in the mirror, oogling at the sight before her. He was practically a perfect being. His ripped, muscular chest, perfect figure, chiseled gorgeous face, with dark chocolate brown eyes. How did she get so lucky? Rewinding his words in her head, she raised an eyebrow at what he had said. "Home?"
Elijah teetered his head. He had hoped Elena wouldn't have picked up on that. Home seemed so…permanent – domestic even. Home. House. The lake house. His place in life was really wherever Elena was. "back here," he corrected.
Shaking her head, she gave a laugh. It wasn't the word he used that struck her. It was its meaning. "No, I mean…home…it just sounds so…"
Elena pondered her brain for the word. Simple? regular? Nonchalant? Perfect?
Elijah stared at her reflection in the mirror with a raised eyebrow, waiting to hear what she had to say.
"Never mind," she laughed nervously. Saying it sounded really good was both embarrassing and lame. "Can we start over?"
Holding back a smile, Elijah shook off some of the shaving cream from his razor.
"Good morning, Elena," he said, meeting her eyes in the mirror as he attempted to follow her wish.
Having a hard time containing her own smile, she shook her head. "Good morning, Elijah."
"I didn't find you in bed with me when I woke up."
Sipping her coffee so she wouldn't drool over his body, she attempted to focus. "I went for a run this morning. I didn't want to wake you."
Silence set over the two and Elena continued to stand there watching him in the mirror. She wondered what he had looked like centuries ago, with his hair long and bearded stubble. Her mind drifted to wonder if he looked as hot back then as he did now. Probably, she thought to herself. Elena continued to stare.
Elijah dipped his razor in the water, glancing at his mostly shaven face in the mirror, before returning his attention to her. He hadn't missed the looks she was giving him. And it certainly didn't help that she stood there, mug in hand, biting her lip as she looked at him dazefully.
"Like what you see?" he asked breaking their silence.
The words caught Elena off guard and she went beet red. It made Elijah give a hearty laugh when she darted her eyes from his body.
"Yes, I do," she admitted.
Once finished in shaving, Elijah wiped away the excess cream on his face with a towel and turned to Elena. Taking the empty cup from her hands, he set it on the sink behind him and hovered above her, trapping her with his arms in the doorway.
Her breath was shallow, labored almost as his proximity became closer. She watched him with lustful eyes, as his head bowed to be at level with hers.
Their lips met each other with fury. Each fought for dominance, battling one another in a lip lock that shot tingles down their spines. Elijah held her body close to his, kissing her with passion and fury, unable to get enough of her as she held his face in her hands. Wrapping his hands around her hips, he grabbed her by the belt loops, picking her up so she could wrap her long legs around his waist. He held her like that, in a tight lip lock against the doorframe, kissing her senseless.
His lips sent Elena's body buzzing. From the warmth of his skin to the soft fresh shaven skin on his face. She wandered her hands from his face to his broad shoulders and down his muscular chest. She loved this man.
As the passion got higher and the sexual tension was about ready to explode, Elijah ripped his lips from hers and instead pressed their foreheads together. The veins around his eyes were pulsing and his pupils had gone black. Elena could tell under his swollen lips were his sharpened vampire teeth.
Kindly waiting for him to calm down, she ran her fingers through his hair and took in slow deep breaths.
Once she was sure he had regained control, she slowly set her lips back on his. They kissed with passion, this time more gently than the first. Their lips danced with one another, his eloping hers.
He carried her to sit on the ledge of the bathroom sink. Keeping one another close, Elena wrapped her arms around his neck as he cupped her face with his hands. Breaking away for air, the two of them stayed with the faces mere centimeters with one another. They took their time looking deeply at one another. The moment felt raw.
Muffled sounds of arguing, rumbling and something shattering something broke the couple's peace. "Kol!" Rebekah shouted in frustration.
Elijah sighed while Elena gave a breathless chuckle. There was something about having a house full of vampires that kept things interesting.
"I should get downstairs," Elena said tearing herself away from him. Moving to jump down from the sink, her body brushed against his, and her cheeks turned a light shade of pink. Elijah had become aroused. His hardness poking her in the stomach from under his tented towel.
Glancing up at him, she brought him back down to her for a long loving kiss. It was flattering to know she could get him so riled up.
Leaving him so she could deal with the household of people, Elena went searching for the problem.
In the kitchen was a broken coffee cup, coffee spattered all over the floor and Jeremy cleaning up the mess.
"What is going on?" Elena wondered, bending down to help pick up the spill. Klaus couldn't seem to be bothered by it, not tearing his eyes from the newspaper, while Rebekah and Kol were nowhere to be found.
"Kol stormed out of the house and Rebekah is upstairs changing," Jeremy answered, carefully picking up the pieces of the broken ceramic.
Grabbing a paper bag, Elena carefully put the pieces inside. "And what happened?"
"Kol made some comment about Rebekah not having a date for prom, and then the whole thing spiraled from there. She yelled at him for being jealous, and he snapped at her for living through high school for the fiftieth time. I don't know," the Gilbert said shaking his head. "But it ended with Kol accidentally spilling coffee all down the front of Rebekah's shirt."
The pair finished cleaning up the mess as Rebekah came back downstairs in a change of clothes.
"Now we'll be late," she deadpanned, clearly not in a good mood.
As the blonde grabbed her things, Elena got out a travel mug and filled it with coffee, making it to her liking.
"Jeremy, hand me the keys, I'm driving," Rebekah commanded.
Handing Rebekah the cup, Elena gave a sympathetic smile. Living with boys was rough. They had to stick together.
Giving Elena a small smile, she took the coffee and the keys from Jeremy, rushing off to school.
Once they were gone, Elena let out a tired sigh and then went to find Kol. Glancing around from her place on the porch, she found him out near the docks. Making her way down there, she tucked her hands in her back pockets.
"Hey," she said softly.
"I did nothing wrong," he told Elena in a justified tone. Glancing over to the human, his look faltered. So maybe he didn't truly believe that.
Giving him some time, the pair looked out at the water. It was calm today, barely any waves in sight. Glancing over to the brunette, she frowned and put a hand on his shoulder. He seemed pensive. "What's going on?"
Kol glanced to her hand and then looked back at the water. He wasn't sure what was going on. Maybe he was tired of the domestic life or being in one place for so long. Usually he could fill his day with plenty of things, but here, if it weren't training Elena or bugging Elijah, playing video games or hunting for clues about Finn, he had nothing to do.
He was jealous of Rebekah. Every day she had school or filled her time with homework or school events. She knew how to keep busy. And he wished for that.
Elena waited patiently, leaning against him for support. It wasn't long before he slung his arm around her shoulder and they continued to stare out at the waters.
"I want a purpose, Elena. I want more than just to be an errand boy for my brothers when it comes to finding Finn or tracking down vampires for Jeremy so we can find Silas. It's driving me mad here."
She kept silent for a while, giving him more time to calm down before she spoke. "I was thinking of filling out some college applications. Want to join me?"
Kol scoffed. "helping you fill out such nonsense and teaching you to write an essay does not sound like my kind of fun, Elena."
She shook her head. "Not help me. Join me." Waiting for his reaction, she shrugged. "I was thinking you and I could go to college together, Kol."
There was a look of surprise and then a look of happiness on Kol's face. Sweeping her up, he laughed and cheered. He knew what this meant. She was planning to transition. That, and that he was now given the opportunity to corrupt her and bring out the Elena he'd heard so much about who knew how to party. He had given her a purpose.
Elena laughed alongside him, unknowing the idea could be so satisfying.
"You're sure? This is serious. You want to go to college?"
Placed back on her feet, she smiled at him. "Am I sure that I want to go to college, or that I chose to transition?"
"Both," he decided.
Elena nodded and looked out at the water. "I want to live. I want to be here with you guys, and I want to see Jeremy grow up. I don't want to be on the other side only being able to watch that. I want to live it."
Kol smiled and slung his arm back around her shoulders. Pulling her back to him, he felt so happy about her decision.
"As for college, I feel like that's the next step. And I figure why not try to drag along the party boy himself?"
"Oh you'll love it, Elena," he said thinking of all the different colleges they could go to and have a blast.
Kol super sped around the state as Elena made her way back up to the house with him. He had grabbed a bunch of college pamphlets in the area to show her.
"And these are just the ones around here," he told her as they got inside. Klaus had left for the day, so Kol grabbed their laptops and made a makeshift workstation at the table. He began searching for other colleges around the country he'd recommend.
"What's going on here?" Elijah asked the pair at the kitchen table while adjusting his tie. He was back in his usual professional attire.
"Elena and I are looking at colleges," Kol answered, shoving more papers towards her way. He planned to print off every brochure he could find so they could begin to narrow their choices.
Elijah looked at them curiously. Colleges? That would mean…
A smile spread across his face. She had planned to transition then. "When did you decide this?" he wondered happily as she walked up to him.
"A while ago," she said trying not to make a big deal out of it. "I've been meaning to tell you, it just never really seemed like the right time."
He stared at her curiously. What did the right time look like? Locked in a staring battle, she silently assured him of her choice.
Feeling his phone vibrate, he let it go to voicemail. It stopped for a moment, only to pick up again. He sighed. "Let's celebrate tonight then," he told her, leaning down to kiss her. Once parted, the two went their separate ways, dealing with matters of their own.
By nightfall everyone had heard about Elena's decision. They had gathered at the lake house, setting a bon fire out back, roasting marshmallows, drinking, and filling the night with laughter to celebrate. The tension between Kol and Rebekah dissolved, each chalking it up to siblinghood. Everyone was enjoying the night.
"So, you're sure about this?" Jeremy asked to his sister as she went to grab another marshmallow. He had only heard of her decision when he had gotten home from school and was surprised. The two of them hadn't talked about it and last he knew; she had been considering letting go and passing to the other side.
"I am," she said oddly sure of her decision. "I want to be here, Jer. I want to be around for you and Caroline, Bonnie and Matt. I want to continue to love and spend time with Elijah and the rest of the Mikaelsons. I can't do that from the other side."
"But you'll be a vampire," he reminded her, making sure she understood that point. He admired his sister for focusing on others, but that was the problem many times. She couldn't focus on herself.
She nodded. She would be. She would have the blood lust and become the thing she never wanted to be.
"I just want to make sure you really know what you are committing to," he said in a big brother tone. "Make sure it is what you want and not something you are doing for others."
Elena smiled gratefully at her brother. She was glad to have him. "I have Jer. I'm terrified, don't get me wrong," she spoke. "But I'm not ready to go yet. There is still so much more I want from life."
Jeremy pulled his sister into a side hug. While he couldn't' say he was a fan of her going vampire, he was really glad he was still going to have his sister around.
"Elijah!" her friends cheered drunkenly.
"Hi Klaus," they said in a less friendly tone.
Elijah came walking over to Elena, kissing her softly.
"Where have you been?" she wondered to him curiously. He had texted her around dinner saying he was running behind and wouldn't be back with Klaus until late.
"We've got some of the missing pieces from Jeremy's tattoo," Elijah answered. "I didn't want to say anything to you until it was official."
Elena was confused and Elijah licked his lips, nervous to elaborate as everyone went hush. "I've been looking for other vampires who have come across hunters. Many hunters tend to draw their markings down. After tracking down a few, I've been able to obtain their drawings."
"You stole them?" Elena wondered surprised.
Elijah shifted in his stance. "…not exactly," he said with hesitancy.
The metaphorical shoe was about to drop, Elena could tell. If he didn't steal them then how did he get them? And how did he get past the hunters? And what about the curse?
"Wait, what about the hunter's curse?" Elena wondered to him. "How are you okay?" she asked concerned now.
Elijah brought a hand to rub the back of his neck. She was not going to like this part. "I was able to get around the curse by using humans."
Elena waited for more. When he didn't elaborate, she was left to her own conclusions. "You had humans steal the documents…"
Elijah glanced back to Klaus who was attempting to hide his enjoyment about the matter. "Elena, I compelled the humans to kill the hunters and bring me back the documents."
And it was with that that Elena turned from her spot and walked inside the house.
Elijah was hot on her trail, everyone looking back to them with differing expressions on their face.
"Elena," Elijah called after her, shutting the sliding back door behind him, as she stormed into the kitchen.
Elena turned on her heel to him, livid with anger. "How could you do this, Elijah?!"
He frowned at her anger. While yes, it was bad, it wasn't the worst thing that could have been done. When the humans were finished, he let them go, making sure they wouldn't remember a thing.
Telling her this, he tried to assure Elena that the people he compelled were unharmed and the hunters were dead so that they couldn't hurt anyone else.
"Is that supposed to make things better?" she questioned when he was finished. "Elijah, you compelled a person to commit murder for you. That person took a life… and now," she chuckled in anger, "and now they can't even remember that."
He understood what she was saying, but it didn't make him any less frustrated. "What did you expect me to do, Elena? Go get the documents myself?"
She shook her head, running her hands through her hair.
"Jeremy was working on the map," she tried to justify feebly. He didn't' have to go out and do this. All he had to do was wait.
"it would have taken him a thousand years to hunt all the vampires we needed to complete that map," Elijah said, his voice equally as passionate. "We need to act quickly and stop Finn from whatever he has gotten himself into."
She tried to counterargue that, but she really couldn't. Elijah did have a point. Hunting vampires and taking Jeremy along for him to kill them was a slow process. But the way he went about getting answers was wrong. She couldn't get over that.
"You took someone's choice away and had them commit murder for you." She shook her head in disagreement with his choices.
Elijah stood there unknowing what to say next.
That's how they left it for the next few days. Elena had barely spoken to him, tried her best to avoid him, and only interacted with him when absolutely necessary. Kol and Klaus thought it was bad when Rebekah was mad, but Elena was a whole other thing. She could freeze people out like the tundra.
"You want to apply to all of these?" Elena asked Kol, a huge stack of admissions applications shoved her way. They had each gone through the piles sorting through the colleges they found interest in. Elena had narrowed her stack to about five schools, while Kol's was sitting as tall as a tower in front of her. He had chosen over 40 schools all over the country for them to apply to. It was only a few weeks before the deadlines were due.
"if we don't get in and it's our chosen college, we can compel our way in."
Elena shot Kol a look, unhappy with that idea.
"You'll be a vampire, Elena," Kol stated. "It's part of what vampires can do. You're not hurting anyone."
Unsettled by the idea and the feelings behind it, she sat back in her chair and sighed. Compelling faculty and college staff was something she didn't want to worry about yet. For now, she just wanted to focus getting all her apps in and seeing if she'd be accepted. She was late to the game already. "Okay, let's get started."
Grabbing her pen, Elena began the forms.
"…have you asked Elijah his thoughts?" Kol wondered breaking the silence. He tried to sound nonchalant about it, but Elena knew better.
Pausing, her pen hovering over one of her forms, and she stared at the application. "What do you mean?"
"Well, these schools are located all over. I'm sure he'd want to join you wherever we go…"
Elena glanced over to a hopeful looking Kol. She knew what angle he was trying to play, and he was doing it out of favor for Elijah. "Kol…" she warned.
"It's not as bad as you may believe," He told her, referring back to Elijah's poor judgement. "No one died besides the hunters. The humans are just as safe as they were before."
Shaking her head, she wasn't in the mood to argue differing of opinions. "can we just drop the subject and get back to all of these forms? It's going to take us forever to get through this huge stack."
He opened his mouth to pitch the compelling people idea and she stopped him. "No, we are going about this the normal way. No short cuts."
Kol huffed and picked up his own pen going to work.
The next morning when Elena came home from her early morning run, she found Elijah sitting on the steps waiting for her. He was back in his tee shirt and jeans attire; the bearded stubble coming back as well.
Hoping to avoid him, she took a few steps backward, hoping to pick up her pace and turn back around to the woods. It didn't matter that her legs felt like they were going to fall off. She'd rather they did than face him.
"Elena," he called, not having to look up to know she was there.
Sighing, she turned around, stretching her limbs as she made her way over to him.
"I want to take you somewhere," he told her when she appeared in front of him. It was probably the closest she had been to him in the past four days if you didn't count sharing a bed.
Both puzzled and curious, she stayed quiet.
"Would you come with me?" he wondered to her. Getting up from his spot on the steps, he held his hand out to her.
She stared at it, part of her wanting nothing more to take it and forget about being mad at him. But she couldn't.
"I'm a sweaty mess, Elijah." It was supposed to be an excuse, a silent 'no, I'm not going with you'. But it didn't work out that way.
"I don't care about that," he replied. Staring at her and hoping she'd meet his eyes, he continued to hold his hand out for her.
It took her longer than expected to take his hand. He had waited with as much patience as he could muster. He had slowly begun to lose hope that she would accept his invitation by the look on her face and his hand wavered. When she accepted his outreach though, hope was restored. Before she could think he had taken her in his arms and run off with her. He brought her back to their spot, walking them a bit through the woods, down the rocks and to the jump behind the falls.
He reached out for her hand again, hoping she'd take the sign of trust, but instead she passed his offering and used her vampire abilities to take the jump herself. Elijah followed suit, hurt by her actions, but led her to their cove.
He had decorated it with candles and trinkets. This time there were more blankets and pillows, with strings of lights hanging all around. He wanted it to look magical. In addition to all the supplies, he had brought them food, himself a few blood bags, and a change of clothes in a bag.
The scenery was sentimental and thoughtful. At first, she couldn't help but feel warmed at his gesture. The twinkly lights made things feel like a fairy tale, and if had been any other time, she would have praised him for knowing her like he did.
But as she stood there with the special set up in front of her, she found it didn't feel right. Reality crashed down upon her and she remembered the horrible thing he had done. The smile that was growing on her face faltered and she found that a romantic gesture didn't change what he had done.
"Elena," he called with a frown. He had watched her face turn glum and it made him feel queasy. He had to use his vampire speed to catch her before the jump, him teetering near the edge of the cliff, placing his body in front of hers to stop her.
He wanted them to talk. He wanted to say he was sorry for having to use a human like that, but not sorry for what he had done. They had almost the entire map now. He needed to make her understand. And he needed her to give him time and listen for him to do that.
She couldn't seem to meet his eyes. She wasn't sure if it was because she felt guilty for being mad at him when he was trying to apologize, or for still feeling angry at him as he did. Regardless, she didn't want to be reminded of their place right now.
"Just talk to me," he said in almost a beg. "Just…say something."
Elena then glanced up at him, meeting his eyes. What was left to say? Shrugging, she looked at him with a loss of words. It brought tears to her eyes.
He hesitantly brought her close. She stiffened at first, ready to pull away, but when he bent down, lightly brushing his face against hers, she faltered. He held her, not kissed her. Standing close against her, he held her hips, pressing them against his body and took all the time to feel her, be mesmerized by her.
Elena closed her eyes with a sense of pleasure. She had missed him over the past few days. It had been so hard to stay away from him and ignore him. She had missed his arms – his embrace. She just wanted to be held and pretend as if none of the evil he had done had happened.
It was Elijah who pulled away first. He pulled himself back so that he could cup her lower jaw in his hand and bring his lips down to hers. He had moved slowly enough to give her time to pull away, and when she didn't, he quickly closed the gap.
It was a slow burning kiss, one that held too many emotions to be able to describe. It flooded Elena with feelings and she pulled away.
"You have to know I did what I thought was best for all of us," he told her softly before she could push him away.
Glancing up at him, tears began to build in her eyes again. "You hurt people."
"For a reason, Elena." This was his chance, his one opportunity for her to listen and get her to understand him. "I did it for Jeremy, for us, my siblings, the witches…I did it for everyone. We can't stop something we can't see, and we can't protect it against Finn if we are not there before him. Jeremy can't come along to every vampire hunt my brothers and I take. It is too exhausting to bring him everywhere we go. Something had to change."
Elena sighed. Kol had been trying to say the same thing to her.
It bothered her though, to think of the humans who had been compelled. She couldn't imagine going through life having killed someone and then not know it. To have that on her conscious, knowing something about them they couldn't or wouldn't know about themselves, was disturbing.
Sighing, she turned away from him. Crossing her arms around her chest, she looked back at the bed he had made the two of them. "I get why you did it," she spoke, her voice trembling a bit. "I just don't like that you did it. You took something from them Elijah…something those people can never get back."
He may not have physically hurt them, but knowing a random person was a pawn in their messed up supernatural game didn't sit well with her.
"They will be okay, Elena," he assured her. "I sent them off living their lives and they weren't injured in the process of obtaining the drawings." Elijah hade even compensated them for their doing, giving them no recollection of such actions besides running errands.
Elena stood there uncomfortably in the cave, feeling Elijah walk up behind her. He was hovering. Feeling as he dipped his lips towards her neck, fanning his warm breath over her skin, she shook. Swallowing hard she stepped out of his reach. "I think…I think I'm just….I-," she left with a stumbling and incoherent excuse. Shuffling past him, she quickly left the cave and climbed her way down the rocks to get some distance from him.
At the end of the path of rocks was a small body of water. It was hard to tell how deep it was, but it was so clear and clean. Keeping close to the falls, she walked over to a large rock and sat there. It was so hard to breathe near him, so difficult to think. Her heart and her head were at odds. It was driving her crazy.
Standing up and slipping off her shirt to reveal her sports bra, she decided to go for a swim. Stepping out of her running shorts, she stood in her panties. The water was cold, but not freezing. It was somewhat refreshing against her warm skin. Dropping herself into the water, she let her body become accustomed to the temperature before submerging her head in.
Once the water was comfortable enough, Elena let her body float. She tried to ignore the sounds of Elijah's presence as he walked down rocks and to her pile of clothes on the ground. Instead she stared intently at the sky.
Even in the water, her vampire hearing picked up the sound of removal of clothes.
Lifting her head up, she watched as Elijah pulled his shirt from over his head, unbuckle his belt, shed his jeans, and tossed his shoes and socks aside. He was left in nothing but his boxers and Elena was practically drooling. Turning away from him, she tried to steady her breathing as she treaded water farther away from him. Elena Gilbert was not going to be sleeping with Elijah Mikaelson while angry at him. No. Angry sex led to nowhere good and problems wouldn't be solved. She'd only be left with regret for making things more complicated.
Gasping in fright when he popped up in front of her, she shoved him as he laughed.
"I'm sorry," he said attempting to contain his amusement. He hadn't meant to startle her in all honesty. He thought she had seen him dive in after watching him strip.
Pulling her back to him before she could retreat, they treaded water together.
Elena swallowed hard, realizing their faces were so close with one another. The attraction between them was humming no matter how she tried to fight it. It warmed inside her body and made her shiver with goosebumps as their proximity continued to get closer and closer. Before she knew it, his lips were on hers and they were making out in the water.
She kissed him till she was practically drunk on him. She missed him dearly, more than she knew she cared to admit as he held her in his arms. Pulling away from his lips, she dizzily noticed they were now in shallower water, her legs now wrapped around his waist. She hadn't realized in all their kissing he had pulled them closer to the falls in water where he could stand.
There was a moment of vulnerability for her, one where she felt both safe and tired enough that she could just be. "I missed you," she admitted to him. Keeping her arms wrapped around his neck, she brought him into another kiss before she could think.
She was still mad at him, or at least she wanted to be. But it was hard to feel that way when everything in her missed him. Every part of her being missed every bit about him, and as much as he was the bad guy, she loved him deeply.
"Tell me we are okay," he said to her gently when they parted again for air. Staring into his eyes, he pleaded for reassurance. He was scared to lose her, to be monster she never thought he could be.
"I don't know," she said with honesty. "I'm still mad at you. But… I love you, Elijah. And I can't change that."
Those words were enough for him. Crushing his lips to hers, he held her close in every possible way that he could. He hadn't lost her love or her respect. He had messed up, sure, but he hadn't lost her in all of his darkness. He never wanted to let her go.
They stayed in the water until they were wrinkly. Elijah gave her his shirt before dressing himself so she could use it as a cover up and not have to slip her shorts and shirt back on. He waited as she tied her shoes, grabbing her hand and holding it in his as they walked back to their cove.
They took the jump together this time. Hand in hand the two leapt with their vampire abilities over the gap and behind the falls. He could handle that she was still mad at him, as long as it didn't entail keeping their distance from one another. He couldn't handle that again.
Attempting her best to ignore the hum of sexual tension in the air, she stood awkwardly near the entrance of their cove, glancing to the inviting set up he had made.
"There's food, if you're hungry," he offered seeing her turmoil. Going over, he pulled out an array of items for her choosing.
Settling down on the makeshift bed, the two of them ate their food in peace, Elijah glancing over to her every so often, sensing her discomfort.
"Did you and Kol finish applying to colleges?" he wondered, reaching to grab himself a blood bag before returning his attention back to her.
"Kol has chosen way too many colleges," Elena said with an honest laugh. Picking at her fruit, she smiled at the thought of him. "But he has grand ideas for college. And I've never seen him so hyped."
Elijah let a soft smile grace his lips. His brother really did seem happy. He had been keeping Elena busy for days on end, them sitting at the table doing their applications and essays. "And where does he have you applying?" he wondered.
Elena pushed the fruit around her plate. "All over really. There isn't a state or country he doesn't have in mind. I doubt we will get into all of them, but he was insistent we have options."
"Do you want to go out of state? Elijah wondered.
Elena shrugged, shoving a strawberry around with her fork. "I heard from Caroline and Bonnie that they had applied to Whitmore college. Matt is taking a year off. It'd be nice to stay close by and be with Jeremy. But I don't know…I mean, the places I've seen and travelled to when I was on the run weren't that bad. It'd be nice to start somewhere fresh."
Elena sighed. Shoving her food aside, she got up and began pacing. "What are we doing here, Elijah? I mean, we come here and have this hot make out session, but that doesn't change anything. I have all of these feelings for you, but we are going around in circles and-…"
She stopped herself and bit her lip.
Elijah got up; pensiveness written on his face. "And what?"
Elena bit her lip, trying to focus on her feelings and not on his naked chest or his kind, gentle demeanor that was walking towards her.
No, Elena, her head kept telling her. He manipulated people. He used humans. He knew how you feel about them!
Elena took a step back from Elijah's coming embrace.
"Be mad at me, Elena," he told her. "Be mad at me all you want. But realize that I am a vampire. I have lived for so long that family is all I have left and I will protect them no matter what the cost. I will do whatever it takes. I will do what needs to be done to protect you," he said softer. "I may have curbed my urges and not killed any sort of being since we fell in love, but if it ever comes down to you or them, I will take whoever it is down and use whoever I need to do it."
The statement shook Elena.
Am I in too deep? She wondered to herself. Their love and his words…the way she felt for Elijah… the way her body and soul felt for him, it was all consuming. And that suddenly terrified her. It terrified her more than death, because the love for him made her vulnerable. It made her accept things he had done that were against her own beliefs.
"Don't think," he told her, standing right in front of her brushing some hair back from her face. "you'll overthink it all."
She stared into his eyes. In loving someone, you accept all of them – the good, the bad, the monster, the being. He had shown her a bit of the monster, but in truth, it was nothing she hadn't accepted with her friends and loved ones before.
"I love you, Elena Gilbert," he told her, staring into her eyes. "And I know I hurt you by using those humans to get what I needed. I know it disturbs you greatly. I am sorry for all of those things. But please, don't let that make you pull away from me. You love me and I love you. It is that simple."
She broke eye contact. Was it?
"It is," he breathed nuzzling his face against hers gently. It didn't take a mind reader or vampire abilities to see her face clouded a mixture of emotions that were of doubt, fear, and helplessness.
Realizing he was bare chested; she felt a sense of desire wash over her. He was so close to her, comforting her and holding her. He was so close, so warm and it was hard not to touch him. Giving into her desires, she brought him into a powerful kiss, letting the passion and feelings be expressed in a kiss.
That was all it took for him to pick her up in his arms and bring her over to the bed. Without breaking the kiss, he laid her down gently and encased her body with his.
She gasped at how needy he was for her. He kissed her all over as he slipped himself inside of her. Thrusting them together in rapid motions, he grasped her body with need, taking her over the edge and not stopping until she was overwhelmed with pleasure. It didn't take him to follow her as he stared into her eyes, watching and admiring her until the high overcame him. He let his body release into her, spilling himself inside of her, listening to her moan as he let himself go.
They laid together in blissful silence, him stroking her hair as she laid doodling on his chest. It felt like old times, like they were back to normal. Elijah knew Elena was still perturbed by the incident, but he had successfully stopped her from pulling away from him and questioning everything.
"Tell me how you decided on becoming a vampire," he said out of the blue. She glanced at him surprised.
Laying her head back down, she had gone through her thought process and laid out all the reasons it was best to be a vampire. The biggest was Jeremy. She didn't want to leave her brother an orphan with no one around. And the second was Elijah…and his family. She loved them dearly.
"Do you know who will do it?" Elena wondered nervously.
Elijah sighed. "It'd probably be best if it were Rebekah or maybe Kol. Vampires have a chance when transitioning others to develop a sire bond. If I were to change you and that were to happen..."
Elena had seen it before with Tyler and Klaus. The devotion and loyalty the younger male had for the hybrid was unfathomable. It ran so deep it almost broke up Caroline and Tyler.
"No, it's a good idea not to," Elena agreed. "But why them? Why not Klaus?"
Elijah had mulled the idea around in his head, but each time jealousy got the best of him. If a sire bond were to occur with him and Elena, he wasn't sure if he could ever handle it.
"I don't like the idea of Klaus being the one to change you. It's a personal thing to do Elena and knowing Niklaus he would try to twist the process to his advantage in any way possible."
And with Rebekah and Kol that wouldn't happen. While part of her didn't believe Klaus would do that to her, she didn't want to argue with Elijah. There was a possibility and that was that.
"You've developed quite a relationship with my brother," Elijah noted.
Elena swallowed, wondering if he had meant Klaus. Did he see them together when they were training and not tell her? The scene only appeared intimate.
"Kol has very much amended his ways."
Elena let out a slow deep breath. Right, Kol. To her, he was just…well, Kol.
"He had mentioned you had discussed your history with the Salvatores with him."
Leave it to Kol to blab something like that. While Elena trusted him completely and she had no doubt he'd keep the details of what she said to him in confidence, it didn't mean that he wouldn't share the overall points to others when there was a chance to boast about them.
"We've never really talked about it before…." Elijah noted.
It was this open-ended sentence that Elena wasn't sure where to go with it. Luckily, Elijah's phone buzzed and began ringing, breaking the conversation.
Sighing, Elijah grabbed his jeans that were tossed by the end of their bed and answered the call.
"What?"
"We have the rest of the map. Get back here."
With a click the line went dead.
"Elena-"
He turned to see she was already getting up and getting dressed. Just like that the plans had changed and the battle they long waited for had begun. It was time to get down to business now. The time to be living was being cut short to the end. Without speaking a word, Elijah followed suit and got dressed.
"Ready?" she wondered to him.
"Let's go."
