Chapter Thirteen
"You know Stefan hates dancing, right? Don't you usually have to beg him?" Elena asks Caroline who's lounging on her bed.
"Well, I didn't have to beg him this time, weirdly enough. I guess he was okay with dancing in Miss Mystic Falls," Caroline responds, examining her nails.
"Oh, man, Stefan is whipped," Bonnie exclaims with a grin on her face.
"Nu-uh, Bonnie. He's just being cooperative this time because he knows how much I wanted to do this."
"You have him wrapped around your perfectly manicured finger, Care," Bonnie sings, "When are you guys going to take the next step in your relationship?"
Caroline laughs nervously, "What step would that be?"
"Moving in together, of course. You guys have sleepovers all of the time, so it wouldn't make a difference."
"Don't you think it's a little early to move in together? I mean, we've only been dating for...two months."
"And for those two months, you've spent about 6 weeks at each other's places."
"Whenever you ask Jeremy to move in with you, I'll move in with Stefan," Caroline tells her.
"What? No, those are two totally different situations. Okay, I still live with my Grams. Jeremy still lives with his parents and Elena. We can't just move in together if we don't have our own house, unlike Stefan who just lives with Damon."
Caroline's eyes light up at the sound of a new topic to discuss. "Speaking of, Elena, how are things going with you and Damon?"
"If you're wondering if I'm going to be moving in anytime soon, that answer would be a solid no."
"Elena! You have been dating Damon for over...I don't know, it's been that long! Why don't you want to move in with him?"
"We're kind of having a rocky relationship. He's been keeping things from me, so I'm just being on the cautious side."
"What? What kind of things? Are they bad?"
"I'm not sure," Elena admits, "I didn't pry. He said he didn't want to talk about them."
"Don't you think you have a right to know what he's been doing at night when he's supposed to be in your bed, 'Lena? I think you're giving him too much leash," Bonnie says.
"Maybe I am. There are just so many kinks in our relationship. On a lighter note, I got accepted into NYU for pre-med," Elena smiles.
"What? Oh my god, Elena, that's amazing!" Caroline shrieks and jumps to embrace Elena.
"I'm really happy for you, Elena, but...are you going to move to New York?" Bonnie questions with a look of sadness.
"It's not definite," Elena explains, "I'm probably going to stay for the medical degree at NYU School of Medicine. I can decide to come home to do my internship and residency, which is most likely what I'll end up doing."
"Uh...have you...have you talked to Damon about this yet?"
Elena shakes her head no, "I'll tell him after Miss Mystic Falls. Are you sure you don't want to enter, Bon?"
"Hah, I'm positive. Pageants aren't really my thing. I'll root for you two, though," Bonnie replies with a cheeky smile.
"Eh, I'm not aiming to win. Mostly just doing it for fun and for my mom," Elena tells the girls with a shrug of her shoulders.
"Well, I am aiming to win," Caroline grins, "My grandmother and both of my aunts had won this pageant. My mom's the only one who didn't get the gene. I want this."
"Then I sincerely hope you win, Care. It'll be fun," Elena muses. Looking at the time, she bolts up. "God, it's almost time for the practice. Come on, we're going to be late!"
Caroline and Bonnie dash out of the room, following Elena, and they drive to the high school where the practice is being held.
—
When they arrive at the high school, Elena breathes out a sigh of relief when she sees Damon sitting there.
"Hey, you made it," Elena says, a little surprised.
"I promised, didn't I?" Damon smirks before pressing a kiss to her forehead. "We are going to nail this dance."
"Don't forget, you're not allowed to touch during this dance," Elena reminds him. She laughs softly when she sees Damon's eyebrows shoot up.
"What? How is that considered dancing? It sounds ridiculous," Damon huffs.
"No dissing the near-touch, Damon. This dance goes way back to 1864," Elena states.
"Actually, in 1864, this pageant was cancelled due to vampire hunting."
Raising her eyebrows, she smirks at Damon, "Okay, someone's brushing up on their history. Though I'm not sure how you know it was cancelled because of vampires…" Elena shrugs and drags Damon to where the other partners are getting ready to dance.
When the music starts, Carol Lockwood begins constructively criticizing the couple's once they start dancing.
"Honor your partner. Stay focused, right hand around. Flirt with your eyes. Left hand around," Carol instructs.
"The near-touch is overrated, if you ask me," Damon whispers before smirking.
"Both hands now," Carol says.
Elena rolls her eyes with a smile on her face, "It's different. I happen to like it," She admits.
"I'm sure you like us touching way more, 'Lena," Damon speaks lowly and a mischievous grin appears on his face. Before she knows it, Damon's twirling Elena and dipping her back in his arms.
"Woah!" Elena giggles.
"No! No, there's no touching during this part. It's all about the simple intimacy of the near-touch. Very nice, Amber!"
They both roll their eyes and continue dancing with the near-touch. When the song ends, the partners bow to each other.
"Please tell me that it's over," Damon says.
"Okay, we're going to run it from the top! Practice makes perfect, and none of you are allowed to leave until your dance is perfected. Go again," Carol orders and the music starts again.
"Damn."
—
When rehearsal ends, Elena and Damon meet up with Stefan, Caroline, and Bonnie.
"That was the most frustrating dance ever," Damon mutters to the others.
"Aw, is Damon mad that he couldn't touch Elena during the dance?" Stefan teases and receives a smack in the arm. "Hey!"
Damon offers a smirk before giving Elena a chaste kiss on the cheek. "I've got to go now, but I'll see you tomorrow for the pageant."
"You better be there," Elena sternly tells him. "I'm counting on you."
"I will be there," Damon promises. He kisses her on the lips before leaving.
Elena turns back around and is bombarded by questioning looks. She responds by shrugging her shoulders, not wanting to overthink the whole situation. If she over-thought, then she would doubt.
"He didn't tell you where he was going?" Caroline wonders aloud, glancing at Stefan and then focusing on Elena.
"Nope," Elena responds, popping the p. "I'm not going to ask because he's going to say that he can't tell me. And before you guys start, yes, I realize how bad that sounds. I'm reevaluating everything that's being put forth in our relationship."
Bonnie nods in an understanding way. "We just don't want to see you get hurt again, Elena. I know Damon has these...tendencies."
"He does," Elena agrees, "Hopefully, this pageant will hopefully be our lifeline. I don't want our relationship to go down in flames."
"Yeah. Honestly, you both really deserve a happy ending," Stefan says. "We've all grown up together, and it would hurt if you guys called it quits. Heh, in case you haven't noticed, we're all kind of Delena shippers."
"I guess we'll just have to see, won't we?"
—
The next day, the girls are getting for the pageant in the Founders' Hall. Miranda's helping Elena curl her hair while she puts her makeup on.
"Thanks for helping me, Mom," Elena says, lightly dusting blush on her cheeks.
"Oh, of course, Elena. This is exciting, isn't it?" Miranda gushes, allowing ringlets to fall down Elena's back.
"You could call it exciting. I'm kind of nervous, though. And I'm not really aiming to win. Caroline wants it more than I do, so she should really win," Elena responds, lightly patting balm on her already perfect lips.
"Just as long as you have fun, I don't care if you win. And your nerves will settle soon, you'll see. There, your hair looks perfect. Aw, Elena, you look beautiful."
Blushing, Elena adds some mascara to her lashes. "Thank you, Mom, though you say the same thing when I wake up with a bedhead."
"Well, I'm sure Damon will say the same thing," Miranda assures her, squeezing Elena's shoulders.
"Speaking of, have you seen him yet?" Elena asks, feeling a little uneasy.
"I'm sure he'll be here, honey. Don't fret, you've still got a bit of time."
"If you say so, Mom. Okay, I'm going to go put my dress on." Elena stands up and walks back to the dressing room, lightly flicking Caroline's curled locks on her way.
When Elena makes her way back to the room, she sees that Amber's already in there, looking quite nervous while pacing.
"Amber? Are you okay?"
"I hate being the center of attention. I get panic attacks."
"Hah, I can't blame you. I feel the same way, most of the time. Do you want some privacy to change?"
"Um, actually, I'm just going to get some air."
"You want some company? I could use some air, too. It smells too much of hairspray and world domination around here," Elena smiles.
Amber returns the grin and nods, looking noticeably less jittery. Together, they walk down the stairs and outside. Elena lets out a deep sigh and leans against the mansion.
"Oh, Elena, you're going to mess up your hair," Amber says, already patting it down.
"Eh, I couldn't care less. I'm mostly just doing this pageant for fun. My best friend, Caroline, really wants to win."
"Caroline, the blonde bombshell?"
Elena lets out a chuckle, "That would be the one. So, who's your escort for this shindig?"
"Jeffrey Lockwood Hamilton," Amber replies, looking a little bitter.
"Sounds like a mouthful."
"A cocky bastard is what he is. I didn't want to participate in this in the first place, but then my mom made me. And then she practically forced my hand in letting Jeffrey be my partner."
"Oh, I'm sorry, but I hope you still have fun."
"Same here. Who's your escort?"
"Pfft, the elusive Damon Salvatore. For all I know, he could be across the country right now."
"It sounds like you expect him not to show…"
"Well, he's not here now. He knows how important this pageant is, and if he ditches me, I will be so pissed," Elena rants, clearly stressed out.
"If it's any consolation, he'd be an idiot to not show up."
Elena smiles gratefully, "Thank you, Amber. We should probably start getting our dresses on, but it was really nice talking to you."
"You too, Elena. Did you want to change first, or…?"
"Nah, you can go ahead. I'll be up after."
"Okay," Amber says before entering the house.
Elena blissfully walks around and then notices Matt, who starts walking towards her. "Hey, Matt."
"Hey, 'Lena. You ready for this?"
"I'd feel a little more prepared if my escort was actually here."
"Oh. Damon's not here yet?"
"Nope. Hey, could you do me a favor? If he doesn't show up for introductions, could you take his place?"
"Well, I don't really know the dance moves-"
"I'll lead," Elena interrupts, "Just...please, Matt? You'll save me from getting embarrassed in front of the whole town, and I'll be eternally grateful. If that's not enough, I'll buy you lunch."
"Alright, I'll do it. Geez, Elena Gilbert drives a hard bargain," Matt says with a grin.
"Thank you, Matt. I really appreciate it," Elena replies, relief flooding her voice, "You're pretty great."
Giving him one last nod, Elena heads back over to the house and enters the dressing room. She looked over her sapphire blue dress and quickly got dressed. Looking at the time, Elena realized that there was only one more hour until introductions. She stepped outside of the dressing room and ran smack into Alaric.
"Oh, god, I'm sorry...Ric?"
"Hey, Elena. That was completely my fault, I wasn't looking where I was going," Alaric apologizes profusely. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm okay. So, um, do you just come to pageants as a pastime?" Elena teases with a smile.
"Well, as the history teacher, I guess I just like coming to all town events. Even if this one isn't very historical."
"Apparently, it's not. This event supposedly didn't even happen in 1864, due to vampire hunting," Elena says, rolling her eyes.
"Speaking of, where is Damon? I heard he's your escort."
"I wouldn't know these days. It's not like he tells me anything."
"Oh...alright, well, I guess I'll tell you what I was going to tell him."
Elena lifts an eyebrow and cocks her head. "What were you going to tell him?"
"How I came back to life."
Elena's eyes brighten at this and she eagerly leans forward. "And how is that?"
Alaric lifts his hand and wiggles the finger donning a ring. "This ring."
Elena takes his hand and examines the chunky ring on his finger. "Wow, this feels heavy. So, you just come back to life if you're wearing this ring? Pretty badass if you ask me."
"Yeah, but I only come back to life if something supernatural caused my death," Alaric explains. "If I die from something normal, then I stay dead."
"Weird…" Elena continues looking at the ring. "Where'd you get it?"
"My wife. Isobel."
Elena's head shoots up at Alaric's confession. "Isobel? Uh...what exactly was her maiden name?"
"Umm, that would be...Sommers."
"Oh my god," Elena exclaims, "You were the kind husband, weren't you?"
"Uh, pardon me?"
"My mom had a sister named Isobel. She said that Isobel had married...you were married to my recently revealed aunt, weren't you?"
"Huh. You are Miranda's daughter, so...oh, wow. Elena Gilbert, you're my niece."
"I never knew of Isobel before. My mom said that she had turned into a vampire before I was born."
"Yeah," Alaric confirms glumly, "She turned into freaking Godzilla with high heels and designer clothes. A real stone-cold bitch, if you ask me."
"And she's the reason why you became a vampire hunter?"
"Basically, yeah. I guess I wanted to avenge the human wife that I had...who died at the hand of vampires. But no matter what I do, I'm never going to get her back."
"Don't dwell on her. She made her choice, and you made yours. You're allowed to move on, Ric. Be happy."
"Thank you, Elena. Heh, this pageant was a real eye-opener."
"Truly," Elena agrees. She suddenly hears Carol making an announcement to all of the guests downstairs. "I guess introductions are going to start. Wish me luck."
"Good luck, but you don't really need it," Alaric says with a wink before disappearing down the stairs.
All of the contestants begin gathering around the top of the stairs. Elena peers over the railing and mentally kicks herself when she doesn't see Damon. Thankfully, Matt is standing with the other escorts, looking a little bit nervous.
Elena turns around when Caroline pokes her in the shoulder. "Hey. I take it by your face that Damon…"
"Ditched me for who knows what? Yeah, yeah, he did. Don't worry, I asked Matt to fill in for him."
Caroline's eyes widen as she digests the reality of the situation. "Wait, what's going to happen now?"
"Um, well, let's see. I put my faith in him, and he let me down, knowing how important this was to me. I think it's safe to say that our relationship is slowly draining down the sink."
Gulping, Caroline nods. "You deserve better, Elena."
"Let's just get this over with. I want to get back to the boarding house before him and get my stuff so I can get out."
Carol calls the contestants' names and their escorts until only Caroline and Elena are left.
"Miss Caroline Forbes, escorted by Stefan Salvatore."
Caroline mouths 'good luck' before descending down the stairs.
"Miss Elena Gilbert, escorted by...Matt Donovan."
Thankful that Matt had the name changed, Elena walks down the stairs with a fake smile plastered on her face. She stiffly takes Matt's hand and they walk outside for the dance. Elena can see her parents in her peripheral vision, not wanting to imagine the looks of sympathy they had on their faces. Bonnie and Jeremy were also somewhere in the crowd, and Elena didn't want to know what kind of thoughts were going through their heads. And then there was Stefan who kept occasionally casting glances at her, his face a mask of the same utter disappointment that Elena felt.
"You okay?" Matt whispers as they bow and curtsey to each other.
"Let's just get this over with," Elena responds monotonously.
They begin the dance when the music begins. Elena tries to focus but her thoughts drift to Damon, no matter how hard she tried to force him out of her mind. It was annoying as hell, so Elena just stared into Matt's own baby-blue eyes. Eventually, Elena allowed herself to get swept into the song and away from her churning thoughts. She even let herself smile a little, despite her emotions raging inside. Unbeknownst to Elena, Damon made his way out of the woods near the house and was surprised to see her and Matt dancing. Especially not expecting her to be smiling, Damon felt a little angry. He knew he had no right since he was late, but he couldn't help it. Clenching his fists, he backed away from the pageant and went back into the woods.
Once the music ended, all of the partners bow to each other again. Elena looked around and saw that most of her friends and family were staring at her. She inwardly cursed, knowing that Damon ditching her would cause these kind of reactions from her loved ones.
The contestants walk onto the stage set up and wait for the Mayor to announce the winner. Caroline shoots Elena a look.
"Elena-"
"Not now," Elena stops her, holding her hand up.
The Mayor comes over and walks onto the stage. "Before I crown the winner, I'd like to offer a personal thank you to all of these ladies for their efforts to better our community." Everyone applauds. "So, without further ado, it is my honor to announce our very own Miss Mystic Falls, Caroline Forbes." More applause. Caroline's crowned and she looks surprisingly shocked.
Elena turns to her and gives her a hug. "Congratulations."
"Elena…"
"Congratulations," Elena repeats. "You deserve it, and I'm happy for you. I, uh, I'm going to go to the restroom." Elena flashes another fake smile before walking off of the stage and into the house.
Making her way into the bathroom, Elena closes and locks the door. She runs her hands through her hair in frustration and lets out a deep breathe. Suddenly, she punches the glass mirror with such force that it breaks and shatters. Immediately regretting that decision, Elena holds her bloody hand in pain. "Shit. Bad, bad idea."
She hears knocking on the door but is too preoccupied with trying to get her hand to stop bleeding. Giving up, Elena wraps it in the towel and opens the door to see an entourage of people.
"I'm hope you're all not in line for the bathroom." Elena deadpans, holding up her towel-covered fist. "I think I broke my hand."
The things that followed were exactly what Elena had been dreading. She was being fussed over, apologies and condolences being thrown her way. And of course, she was rushed to the hospital to have her hand checked out. Luckily, it was just a sprain and she only needed a splint.
After convincing everyone that she wouldn't have a mental breakdown, Elena went back to the boarding house. After making sure no one was home, Elena went upstairs to Damon's room and began gathering her stuff, dumping it in a carry-on.
She pulled her shirts from her side of the closet and grabbed her toiletries from the bathroom. Elena made sure to leave every article of clothing of Damon's that she owned. After one last look around the room, Elena sighed in defeat.
Suddenly, she heard the door slam. Elena closed her eyes, hoping and praying that it was just Stefan. But Stefan never slammed the door. He never walked so heavily up the stairs. And he never barged into bedrooms without knocking first.
Confusion was evident on Damon's face as he took in what was happening. "Elena?"
"Damon," Elena replied without emotion before grabbing her bag and curtly walking past him.
"Where are you going?"
"Away from here. More specifically, away from you."
"Wait, wait. Can we just talk first?"
Dumbfounded, Elena turns around. "Talk," she repeats. "You want to talk?" Elena lets out a humorless chuckle. "Go find some other poor sucker to talk to. I'm done trying to talk."
Elena tries to walk away, but Damon ends up grabbing her wrist. "Elena, stop. We need to work this out."
Yanking her wrist back, she shook her head furiously, "No, no, there is nothing we need to work out. I'm done. We are done, Damon."
"Elena, don't leave. I just...I can explain."
Elena spins around on her heel and puts her hands on her hips. "Can you now? Okay, Salvatore. Explain why the hell you weren't at the one thing I specifically requested you to come to, knowing how important it was to me."
"I got...caught up."
Elena raises an eyebrow and crosses her arms. "And what was so important that it couldn't wait until tomorrow?"
"I…"
Elena noticed something on his dark button-up which made her even angrier. "No, no, I get it. You were too busy having a snack, right? That's blood on your shirt. So, you've been feeding on things that aren't blood bags this whole time, is that it? Is that what you've been keeping from me?"
"It's not what it looks like, Elena. I haven't been…"
"You haven't been using people as fast-food meals? Is everything you say a lie, Salvatore?!"
"Okay, look, yes...I have been feeding on people, but that only started this week. I swear I wasn't lying the whole time, Elena."
"Because that makes it so much better?! What exactly made you think that was okay?!"
When she doesn't hear a response, she nods sarcastically. "Okaaay, I think I get it now. You've been hanging out with another vampire, right?"
Silence.
"Screw you, Damon. I should never have trusted you," Elena says before picking up her bag once more and walks towards the door. At least, she attempts to but Damon's blocking her way.
"Oh, you've screwed me, all right," Damon replies snappily. "I'm a vampire, not a damn puppy. We eat people. We enjoy the feed and the kill, and when it becomes too much, we turn it off."
Elena's eyes widen in horror when she realizes he knows about the humanity switch. She angrily grinds her teeth. "Go to hell."
"You've been keeping me on a stupid-ass leash, Elena! Keeping me from embracing my nature, forcing me to drink from blood bags? It sucked!"
Elena finally loses her cool and practically screams at Damon. "You son of a bitch! God, what the hell is wrong with you?! Are you freaking high on blood right now?! I need to get out of here…" She pushes her way past Damon and runs down the stairs, almost making it to the door before she's stopped. Again.
"What do you want from me?!" Elena cries, shaking her head. "Are you punishing me? Trying to rip my heart from my chest? Because if that's what you're trying to accomplish, you did a damn good job. My mother told me all vampires were bad news! Why did you have to go and prove her right?!"
Elena tries shoving past Damon again, but he grabs her arm. Staring into his unflinching, cold eyes, Elena watches as his pupils dilate.
"Stay here," Damon growls.
Silence. And then the sound of Elena's palm harshly slapping Damon's face ran through the air. "Did you just try to compel me?! Has it really come to that? Have you forgotten that I have this stupid-ass necklace you gave me?" Elena rips it from her neck and throws it at Damon. "Take the damn thing, I don't want any reminders of you. God, you're a monster, Damon. You all are. I completely and utterly hate you." Elena makes it out of the house and into her car. She speedily drives home and then rushes into her bedroom, collapsing into tears.