A/N: Nope, I have no excuse for the tardiness…except for a wee one; my husband and I will be welcoming a little one into the world around July. Gosh, I feel so excited!

Anyways, I have major plans for this story as well as future ones [keep a look out for While You Were Sleeping], so stay tuned.

Pretty please read and review.

Chapter Eleven (Part II):

Return to Innocence

Previously…

She honestly wanted to slap the hell out of him for asking that. A simple question, yet so, so stupid. "Are you fucking kidding me?" Her hormones began to kick in, "You're honestly going to play the innocence card when I witnessed you kissing that fucking blonde!"

Elena fumed, having to breathe through her nose rapidly to calm herself. Too much stress could harm her baby. "Are you seriously laughing? Do you find this somehow amusing?" Her voice was laced with venom, immediately shutting him up. She smirked maliciously, itching to cross her arms but finding it impossible with having to have one hand pressed to the phone.

He cleared his throat once again, swallowing the chuckles, "That blonde was Lexi, my only childhood friend. She was friends with Stefan, but then he-"

Her eyes flashed dangerously, "I don't give a fuck if she's an 'old childhood friend'. Why the hell were you kissing her, hm?"

"It was a dare, plus the fact that she wanted to make her ex insanely jealous," He couldn't help the chuckle that ran up his throat.

Elena's eyebrows shot up as her jaw flew down, her cheeks reddening with anger. Ah, hell, she thought. "God, you are such an asshole! That shouldn't have mattered; you should've said no!" Without a second thought, she ended the call, wanting to cease any further stress. With cherry cheeks, she ran to her bed, pulling the covers over her head in hopes of never having to hear from him again.

After all, she had helped Caroline make Tyler Lockwood, now a big-time lawyer in upstate New York, jealous beyond belief by forcing Matt Donovan, longtime friend, to kiss her directly in his viewpoint. Of course, they got back together, lived happily for two weeks before breaking it off. Yeah, what a waste of a relationship. But still, it doesn't make it right. At all.

As the voice of sleep lulled her into its world, she dreamed of what could possibly happen when she faced those impossibly-blue eyes again. Maybe give him a good smack across the face. Oh, the possibilities.

Tugging on the ends of the chocolate strands of hair, her hands visibly shaking, Elena seemed slightly hunched as she walked down the long stretch of sidewalk. Her strides were short coming upon the restaurant where she was to meet her confidants. "Don't do you dare be late, missy!" Caroline had screeched into the phone earlier directly after stepping off of the plane.

Seems the brunette was rather not in a rush, not wanting her friends to see her like this. How would they handle witnessing their best friend being dragged through the mud of depression? The restaurant stood six stories high in all its glory, looming over the city. A shiver ran through her; it reminded her of how he was much taller than the petite brown-eyed girl.

"Caroline Forbes," She swiftly told the seating hostess, who in return checked the list, her eyes suspiciously growing wide before nodding.

"Right this way," The slightly-quivering woman instructed, then flipped around and quickly guided her towards a small table in the corner. A faux smile plastered to her face as soon as she saw their bright, grinning faces around the corner.

Bonnie jumped up, enveloping her into a hug, "My Lord, how I've missed you." Elena smiled back in reply, her vocal chords sore from sobbing earlier in the morning. Caroline crossed her arms, directing a glare towards the seating hostess before glancing to Elena.

"She didn't give you any problems, did she?" Caroline asked, gesturing towards the timid woman. Elena shook her head, once again avoiding any means of talking for the time being. She nodded, dismissing the poor woman with a wave of her hand, "Gosh, she was such a bitch to us when we came in. Said we didn't have reservations when we clearly did." Elena chuckled, but resorted to rubbing her throat after the giggle irritated one of her already-throbbing glands.

Bonnie lifted up the menu, nonchalantly reading through it. Caroline followed suit, licking her lips every once in a while. Not feeling in the particular mood for dining, Elena glanced around the restaurant, observing each smiling, or talking, or eating patron. Her eyes landed on the back of a blonde's head. Almost immediately, a stirring feeling began in the pit of her stomach.

Bonnie cleared her throat, resulting in her having to turn back around, "How are you and the little one doing?" There was a faint smile playing on her lips; Bonnie always had a soft spot for children, especially infants.

Elena shifted, knowing full well that she would inevitably have to speak. "Fine," She croaked out, wincing slightly. The less words she spoke the better. Caroline scooted closer towards her, concern etched into her features.

"No, you're not," She pushed, eyebrows furrowed.

Bonnie straightened her back against the chair, a thought webbing in her head, "Does it have to do with that Damon guy?" Elena bit her bottom lip, head hung low. Very slowly and hesitantly, she nodded her head. Caroline placed a hand on her shoulder, everyone remaining silent.

Bonnie leaned in to whisper, "We won't ask if you don't want to tell." Elena glanced up into the brown eyes of her friend, seeing the sympathy pooling there. She couldn't handle this. Not anymore.

"Would you guys like to start with drinks?" A preppy waitress asked, false grin playing on her lips. A small notepad and paper were placed in each hand, though you could weakly see two scars on her wrists just beneath her bangles. Elena shivered before shaking her head and rushing towards the bathroom.

After checking under each stall to guarantee no one was there, she leaned her head against the wall, not caring how unsanitary it was. Her chest heaved with each small breath she shook, on the verge of an utter emotional meltdown. Her head fell into her hands as she slid down the wall until she hit the ground. Life is so fucked up, she thought.

"Um," A voice sliced through the abyss of silence, "is it alright if I use the toilet? I really, really have to piss." Elena glanced up briefly, nodded, and dropped her head back into her hands. "Thanks." The blonde muttered before rushing towards the stall.

A strange note was struck deep down in Elena. She had seen that face before, but she couldn't place her finger on it exactly. It was on the tip of her tongue.

"That blonde was Lexi, my only childhood friend."

The sounds of the toilet flushing and a zipper being pulled up echoed throughout the tiny room before the stall door opened. Elena's face turned bright red, and Lexi took it as embarrassment. "You okay?" She laughed. She has the nerve to laugh, Elena thought. Elena nodded, a tight smile placed on her lips. The blonde made her way towards the sink where she proceeded to apply soap and wash her hands thoroughly.

She turned around, smiling once again before drying her hands, "I'm Lexi, by the way. You are?"

Elena stood, blocking the exit, "Your worst nightmare."

A nervous laugh escaped my lips, "What?" The brunette stepped a bit farther forward.

"I said, I am your worst nightmare."

I crossed my arms, trying to retain myself from laughing at this petite girl before me, "Oh, really?" She nodded, which set me off. I lightly poked her in the chest, having seen the obvious swell in her stomach, "Listen here, girlie, I don't even know you, so back off."

The brunette shook her head, "Nope, you may not know me, but you indirectly fucked up my life."

I chuckled, not wanting to take part in her pity party, "How so?"

"You stole my boyfriend," She spat.

I froze, "You mean Dylan? 'Cause I'm pretty sure he was perfectly single when we-" The brunette furiously shook her head.

"No, no, no. I'm talking about," She inhaled sharply, "Damon."

Damon? What the hell?

"What're you talking about? I never stole him from anyone," I corrected, taking a step back in disbelief at her accusations.

Her dark eyebrows rose, "Ah, well I distinctly remember seeing you two wrapped up in each other at the bar on the west side of the city." The tears pooling at the base of her eyes had me wanting to wrap her into a hug.

"No, you totally took that wrong," I stepped forward, only to have her step back, "Dylan had broken up with me and I wanted to make him jealous, so when I saw him there I took action." Before I could react, there was a loud crack! My cheek began to throb as my head was tossed to the side by the force of the slap.

"You fucking bitch. You don't just use the first guy you see. Especially," She narrowed her eyes menacingly, "My. Fiancé." Her eyes widened slightly before her face dropped into a defeated expression, "I-I mean my ex-fiancé."

My heart clenched. Jesus, did I really smash an innocent relationship to bits and pieces? Damn, guess I did. Reaching out quickly, I wrapped her into a hug, whispering, "I am so, so sorry. I never knew, he never tells me anything, the stupid bastard." The sound of a muffled chuckle against my shoulder had my heart warming. She pulled back, her mascara slightly smeared, but the scowl now replaced with a smile.

"Blegh, I look like crap," She walked towards the sink to glance in the mirror. I leaned against the wall, curiosity setting in.

"I never caught your name."

Her lips twisted into a grin before she answered, "Elena."

He had been sulking in his hotel room for the past few days, not knowing what to make of his life. How could he have let this happen? She's right, I should've just said no to Lexi, he thought.

The door to the hotel room burst open, revealing a slightly battered blonde. "You will never believe what happened," were the first words out of his mouth as he dropped the bag of groceries on the coffee table.

Damon stayed in place, "Good day to you too, El Toro." Anthony rolled his eyes before flopping onto the bed, accidentally landing on Damon's leg. "Be careful," Damon spat.

The sun poured into the room, lighting up Anthony's face, "I saw this amazingly hot girl at the restaurant today."

Damon shook his head, "You and women," Curiosity got the better of him before he asked, "What did she look like?"

"She looked fi-ine. Kinda short, but long legs. Beautiful dark hair with these wild brown eyes. Man, you shoulda seen her," He licked his lips, eyes fluttering shut. Lord only knows what goes on in his head.

Damon scoffed, realizing how the description fit a certain somebody. Anthony tilted his head, eyes open, "Dude, you deaf or something? Not like I described an ugly ass bitch. Nah uh, man, this woman was lookin' hot."

"Okay, Anthony! I get it!" He snapped, jumping off the bed. Walking towards the living area he angrily plucked the brown paper bag of groceries off of the coffee table and began placing them into the cabinets in the kitchen.

Anthony trailed after him, hurt evident in his eyes, "What's up your ass?"

Damon spun around, spiked hair flying in all direction, "Nothing! Just leave me be!" The blonde flinched, something somewhere in his brain finally clicking into place. Grabbing his letterman jacket, he stormed out the door, slamming it shut behind him without a single word.

Damon laid down the knife, with which he had been cutting celery with, on the chopping board before leaning against the island behind him. He released a defeated sigh, not knowing what the hell to do anymore. It was then that they realized that he had truly pissed off Anthony, especially since he always had the last word in every conversation or argument.

The freezing bricks of the building dug into his back, but he didn't seem to mind. After all, he had been enduring nearly an hour of it. Glancing towards the bright sun high up in the bright blue sky, his green eyes sparkled under the rays. His pale skin soaked up the sunlight as he prepared himself to leave.

What the hell was I thinking, she doesn't even know me, he thought before pushing off of the brick wall. As he walked past the entrance, he couldn't help but glance inside to where the cash register stood. He stopped, seeing the side of her face as she paid her part of the bill. "Elena," He whispered, remembering seeing her name scrawled on the bottom of the check she had left at the café he worked at.

Just when he had worked up the courage to walk towards her, she turned. Not wanting her to see him first, he spun around to face the other side of the street, nervously biting his bottom lip. God, she's an angel, he kept thinking.

She had waved goodbye to a group of friends, and then gradually made her way outside into the cold New York air. Inhaling deeply, she stepped towards the street, immediately hailing a cab. The green-eyed man took his chance and strolled to her side just as the cab pulled up.

"Excuse me-" He began.

She immediately interrupted him and began to run through the usual answers to typical questions, "Sorry, I don't share cabs, won't donate to your 'charity', nor will I become a Jehovah witness."

He chuckled, "Nah, I'm not into those kinds of things. I was just wondering if you…would you…could I take you out sometime?" He glared down to the taxi driver when he began to honk his horn for them to hurry up.

Elena froze, hand still gripping the handle to the cab, "W-what?" She looked up to meet the gaze of the cashier from the French café, "Hey, it's you."

He smiled and nodded, "Yes, it's me, Elena."

She took a step back, "How do you know my name?"

He winced at her action, not meaning to scare her, "I didn't mean to be nosy, but I saw your name on the bottom of the check." She nodded slowly, eyebrows raised. He shook his head, "I'm sorry. Where are my manners," He stuck his hand out for her to shake, "I'm Stefan."