Hey readers. Chapter 26 is here. This chapter is, as I said previously, solely about Delena. All the misunderstanding is going to be solved. And Damon is going to kick his ass until he and Elena goes back to the loving couple they were with their daughter. I hope you guys will enjoy reading it.
The day just seemed to get brighter in his heart although night was falling. Caroline was bubbling away in the next seat of the plane about what she's going to do as soon as they land, but Damon was too lost to register anything.
"Damon." Caroline nudged him. "Damon, what color are her eyes? She asked.
"Huh?" Damon eventually got out of his trace.
"Hello… I just asked you what is the color of Sarah's eyes?" she asked exasperatedly.
"Blondie, I'm surprised that you still don't know that by the way you and my baby brother talk." He snorted.
Caroline rolled her eyes. "Well you know Stefan. He's the 'see for yourself type of guy'."
"What makes you think that I'm not that type of guy? After all I'm he's brother." He wiggled his eyebrow.
He half expected her to babble away about how much she hates the universe, but she surprised him by smiling. "You know, everyone missed this playful jolly Damon." She said still grinning.
Damon started smiling. "Playful is okay, but not jolly." He said only to cause Caroline to roll her eyes even more.
Elena cradled Sarah in her arms and touching the pointy black hair, which was starting to appear. Seems like this little one won't have any noticeable mommy genes anytime soon. Elena smiled at the thought. She always wanted her baby to be as beautiful as her father.
"Elena." Vicki appeared to sit next to her. "After 1 hour we're going to take this little one home." She said excitedly.
"Yeah. I just want to get out of this hospital room so bad." Elena said with a content smile.
"Elena I've been wanting to ask you this ever since you got to see Damon and Sarah together." Vicki said looking down.
"It's okay, Vicki. You can ask me whatever you want." Elena smiled reassuringly.
"Will you go back to New York? I mean we all know that Damon won't ever leave you and Sarah alone." She looked up to her questioningly.
Elena started to think for the appropriate answer. Before Damon came here, her plans were to find a job in the Mystic Falls High School and then move out when she has enough to afford a house. But now that Damon's back in their life, she is in the state of disarray.
"I don't know. I don't want to return to New York. I love Mystic Falls. And I want Sarah to grow up with open space, a big garden, a two story house and clear sky without any skyscrapers surrounding her." And also that place has too much memory of them being together and in love. She sighed and looked at her baby clutching her finger with strong grip. Truth to be told, she wanted Sarah to have her father, but she wasn't sure if her and Damon could ever be like they used to be before. Even though she knew that Damon wouldn't let her and Sarah go, thanks to both Stefan and Vicki. But why now? Why didn't he come after she left with his baby? Why was he drinking and crying himself to sleep instead of searching harder for them? She read all those magazines about how much of a heartless business tycoon he became after she left. Maybe he was just so angry to even look for her. But knowing Damon and his compassion, he would've searched the entire universe even if he had to be angry with her and get his daughter. Something wasn't filling up, and she was scared to ask Damon about it.
"Well just so you know, whatever your plan is, the door to our house is always open for you and Sarah to come and stay." She said with a reassuring squeeze. She knew that Elena was still contemplating about having something with Damon, which is strictly platonic, but she may reconsider once Damon tells her the truth and follow him to live their happily ever after.
"Why does it feel like you know more than I do about what I'll be doing?" she raised her eyebrows.
"You'll see." Vicki smirked.
All of a sudden the hallway started to fill with the same chirpy voice she heard last 8 months ago. "Stefan I didn't just have my first flight so I'm obviously okay. But I love you more now that you asked." She said. Elena giggled at her same bubbliness.
"Urgh… you guys are the worst version of romantic comedy." Damon groans.
"At least it's better than your… what is it again? Tele…nova?" Caroline stammered.
"Telenovela." Stefan corrected her.
"Right telenovela." Elena started to blush, as it didn't take Sherlock Holmes to figure that they were talking about her and Damon.
"Cierra la jodida, Barbie." Damon muttered, knowing full well that she wouldn't understand Spanish and that'd save him from getting a tantrum.
"Whatever." Caroline huffed as she hurried her way to the door to see her best friend after 8 months.
As soon as she opened the door, she spotted her best friend sitting on the hospital, with a small living thing wrapped in a purple blanket on her lap.
"Oh my god." She whispered bringing her hands to cover her mouth. The confident Caroline was long gone and her eyes were starting to fill up with tears.
"Hey Care." Elena said with tears filling her eyes after seeing her.
Caroline didn't say anything before slowly approaching her best friend who held a small bundle of life. She sat beside Elena, her eyes fully trained on Sarah.
Elena looked at her curiously as she didn't have any idea of how she'll react. She saw Caroline start to caress little Sarah's face softly as tears were coming out. "She's so small and perfect." Caroline finally said. Seeing her like that made Elena's eyes water as well. It was at that moment Sarah decided to open her eyes. "Oh my god. She has your eyes, Damon." She looked up at the doorway to see the two Salvatore men staring at them. Damon just smiled seeing them.
"She'll have his hair too." Elena muttered softly.
Her voice seemed to attract Caroline's attention. She looked up at Elena and suddenly threw her hands around her shoulder to have her in a bone-crushing hug. "I had every intention to slap you until you came to your senses, for leaving us. However I'm too happy to see you and Sarah right now."
"I missed you too, Care." Elena closed her eyes.
"Don't you ever leave us again, do you hear me? You have no idea how badly we wanted to search for you?" Caroline said. Wanted? This made a question rise in Elena's head.
"Then why didn't you search for me, Care?" Elena asked pulling away. Caroline's brow furrowed in confusion. Both Damon and Stefan stiffened and Vicki looked at Damon expecting him to do something. "You said you wanted to search for me, which meant you didn't." Then she fixed her gaze towards Damon. "Everybody is saying that you won't let go of me and Sarah now, but why did you let me go back then?" Elena ultimately asked.
Damon took a deep breath before saying anything. "Can all of you give us some space?" he said. Elena was shocked since nobody showed any sign of protest. Vicki took Sarah from her arms and went out along with the others. It was like they already knew what was going to happen. "Where do I start?" Damon said to himself as soon as everyone left the room.
"How about with my previous question?" Elena asked trying to appear strong.
"Well how about I start from the beginning from my perspective?" When he saw her not protesting, he started. "That day I came from the office as early as I could to take care of you myself, because I couldn't bring myself to leave you alone while you were sick. Ever since you got sick I couldn't help the nagging feeling that you might not have a flu." Elena raised her eyes to meet his. "So I had made up a fantasy where you are my wife and everyday after work I'd come to home and be greeted by you and our child in your arms." Elena frowned and her mouth fell open in shock. "So when I found that pregnancy test, it all seemed too good to be true. And then all the negative things started to come up. I was worried that you may or may not want to be pregnant. That I may have ruined how you saw the future. Most of all I was afraid that you might not be ready to start a family with me." Damon took a shaky breath before continuing. "So I went to the bar to get a few drinks to clear out all those pessimistic thoughts. After the second shot everything started to get blurry, like I was hallucinating. The next thing I know is that I'm lying half naked in Katherine's bed and Katherine smiling smugly in the doorway. And the funniest part is that I didn't recall that moment until you asked me that day." He snorted at himself. "I just remembered running to my apartment with a huge hangover to see you. But when I get there," he paused for a moment closing his eyes to subside the feeling of emptiness he felt. "You already took off with everything that belonged to you, except for a letter."
Elena looked at him in confusion. "What letter?" She asked.
Damon looked at her face before shoving his hands in his pocket, taking out the thing in question and handing it to her.
"Read it," he whispered the two simple words, causing her to meet his eyes again.
She saw his name typed in a neatly folded envelop. She slowly opened it and took out the letter, which was also typed out. When she looked at the words her breath caught in her throat.
She started to shake her head in disbelief. "But I didn't write It." she said. She would rather die than do what was written in the letter. Who was so heartless to create such big misunderstanding?
"I know that now. However all those times I thought it was you who wrote it. And it broke every dream, fantasy and imaginations I had. It was like I lost the meaning of life," he said swallowing down the overwhelming feeling of letting out the tears. Elena was having the same problem. Her questions were now answered.
"But who did this?" Elena asked.
"Katherine." He spoke bitterly.
"What?!"
"And not only that. She yet again almost destroyed my life." He said pulling out his phone. Elena frowned more at what he was about to do. Then her ears were filled with the sound of his and Katherine's voice.
Elena's heart was pounding throughout the entire conversation. It seemed like Damon was the bigger victim than her. At that moment she can't help but feel guilty for not analyzing the entire situation and not trusting him. She couldn't help the tears from escaping when she heard what Katherine did to her baby that could've possibly been his.
Damon cupped her cheeks and wiped the tears escaping. She looked at him covering his hands with hers. Their eyes locked with each other. Nobody seemed to register the fact that the recording was over. They were lost in themselves. Damon took a bold step and leaned closer to her. Elena looked at his lips then back at his intoxicating blue eyes. Damon closed the final gap between them and claimed her lips.
Thank god. I finally got this chapter out of my system. You have no idea how tough it was. To be honest not my finest works. There should've been more something about the time when Damon told her. Anyway they kissed. It was easy enough, right? But I always stand by my words.
The song used for this chapter is 'Compass' by Zella Day. This song was also used in The Vampire Diaries, season 6 episode 9 in a Delena scene. Where Elena apologizes to Damon for erasing her memories of him and Damon cups her cheeks and say, 'We'll make new ones."