"Oh my God…" Caroline breathed, her eyes fixed on the new addition to Elena's ring finger. "You're engaged?!"
Everybody's head jerked towards the couple, and the shining diamond suddenly caught their eyes.
The pair exchanged a look before Elena spoke for both of them. "We are." She answered, happily raising her hand to show off her ring more evidently.
Caroline covered her mouth with her hand, and Klaus actually had to place his hand on her thigh to keep her from jumping out of her chair.
"You're-" Bonnie came to an abrupt halt and stared at the couple wide-eyed, her expression mirroring those of her stunned friends.
"Wow." Tyler said.
"I know." Matt, at his side, agreed.
Recovering from their shock, Bonnie and Caroline eventually rose from their chairs and ran into their friend's arms almost knocking her off –that was obviously Caroline –yelling 'Congratulations!'
Elena hugged them back while trying to keep her balance and remain standing. They released her after a few seconds, leaving her a chance to say, "Thank you!"
Stefan beside them cleared his throat. "I'm getting married too, you know?" He gently reminded them.
"Yeah, yeah, congratulations." Caroline told him, disinterested, waving the back of her hand to him.
He arched a disbelieving brow at her and looked away, incredulous. Nice coming from one of his best friends.
Caroline was much more interested in what Elena was wearing at her engagement finger. "Show us your ring." She asked the latter.
Elena extended her hand to them and showed off her beautiful engagement ring.
Bonnie and Caroline both gasped as they took in the diamond.
"Wow…" Bonnie let out.
"You're not taking her for granted." Caroline commented to Stefan, nudging him in the side.
"Of course not." He replied as though it went without saying, causing all three women to laugh.
Klaus stood up and walked over to them. "Congratulations mate." He patted Stefan's shoulder.
"Thank you." Stefan appreciated with a sincere smile.
Klaus turned to Elena. "Congratulations." He told her earnestly. "Wise choice saying yes." He didn't miss to comment.
Elena let out a forced chuckle. "Thank you."
Bonnie and Caroline finally hugged Stefan as well and expressed their good wishes to him.
Matt and Taylor were the next ones to stand up to congratulate the couple. After that, every pair of eyes turned to Damon and Jeremy, the two brothers who had yet to react.
Damon grabbed a bottle of whisky and stood up. He exited the room without a word.
Klaus raised his eyebrows at Damon's theatrical exit. He turned to Caroline, repressing a chuckle. "He's kidding us, right?" He asked her.
Caroline was too shocked herself to even answer him.
Elena narrowed her eyes, an angry glint in them, towards the direction Damon just left in.
She was about to go after him when Stefan stopped her. "Don't."
"No, Stefan, he doesn't get to react like that." She defended.
"I know." Stefan agreed, putting his hands on her shoulders. "I will talk to him." He said and moved to go.
Caroline held her hand up to Stefan. "Don't. Enjoy your moment, okay? You can talk to him whenever." She reasoned.
Stefan nodded. Caroline was right. This was his moment, and he was not going to let Damon ruin it.
Klaus fought to hold back a laugh and ended up smiling instead, but it was a nervous smile. Internally, he was shaking his head in disbelief. He was incredulous. He just couldn't believe Damon. The worst in all of this was that he honestly wasn't surprised by Damon's reaction –he was shocked by his theatrical exit, but he wasn't all that surprised. It was absolutely characteristic of Damon. The man was the most self-centered being Klaus had ever gotten to meet in his thousand years of existence. He actually beat Kol to the art of egocentrism.
In that moment, Klaus realized that for all they bickered, and for all he complained, he was in fact very fortunate to have Elijah and Kol as his brothers. Yes, they had a rather dysfunctional relationship, but the truth was there wasn't anything they wouldn't do for one another. And at the end of the day, they knew when to put their own feelings aside for the sake of another one of theirs.
Jeremy smiled at his sister from his seat and a small smile spread across her lips as well. He stood up and walked towards her but turned to Stefan. He addressed the latter, "Well, it was about time."
Elena frowned in confusion. Her gaze went back and forth between her brother and her new fiancé, disarray all over her features.
"Can somebody please explain?" She finally asked them as they seemed to be perfectly fine enjoying her confusion.
Jeremy smiled. "I already knew." He informed her.
"What?!" Elena and Bonnie both exclaimed at the same time.
"And you didn't tell me?!" Bonnie smacked her on and off boyfriend across the shoulder.
He rubbed his shoulder on the spot where Bonnie had just hit him and frowned. "Well, that wasn't my place." He responded and she crossed her arms over her chest. True.
Elena closed her eyes and shook her head, still confused. "Hold on, how did you even know?" She asked her brother.
Jeremy didn't answer but gave Stefan a meaningful look. Elena turned to Stefan and raised her eyebrows at him questioningly.
"I asked him for your hand." Stefan responded her silent question.
"You what?" Elena's eyes widened. She was dumbfounded. That was such a sweet thing to do and so Stefan like.
"You want to marry my sister?" Jeremy repeated, arching a brow.
"I do." Stefan nodded.
"Are you sure?"
Stefan tilted his head. "What do you mean?"
"What I'm asking you." Jeremy pointedly answered. "Are you sure about yourself?" He asked again.
"Of course I am." Stefan answered, knitting his brows in confusion. He never had the impression that Jeremy doubted his feelings for his sister.
"Stefan, I'm not questioning your feelings for my sister." Jeremy said as though guessing Stefan's thoughts. "And I'm not questioning her feelings for you either. I know that you love each other." He stated matter-of-factly and Stefan nodded. "But really is it that simple?" He asked, catching Stefan off guard.
"Yes." Stefan answered as though the answer was obvious.
The truth was Stefan had given this a lot of consideration. He had thought about marrying Elena so many times, and this, from the very beginning of their relationship. He just never knew if she really saw a future with him given their complicated situation –him being a vampire and her a human.
And there is no need to come back on the avalanche of obstacles, in whatever form they were, that stood in their way.
"Yes, Jeremy, as a matter of fact, it is that simple." He said and Jeremy listened to him with rapt attention. "I've thought about it. I have been thinking about it for a while now, and the fact is: if Elena and I were humans, I probably would have asked her to marry me by now. And just because we're not humans doesn't mean we cannot act like ones." Stefan reasoned. "I may not be able to give your sister children like I wish I could, but I can give her this. I can marry her and I can make her happy for the rest of our lives. I know I can."
After what seemed like an eternity of intense staring but really was only a few seconds, Jeremy's lips pulled into a smile and he nodded. "I can't answer for her…" He paused. "But you have my blessing."
"I can't believe you did that." Elena spoke in a low, almost inaudible voice marked with emotion, hint of tears in her eyes.
Stefan slid his arm around her waist, pulling her close. "He's the only family you have left." He simply offered as explanation.
Tears welled up in Elena's eyes and she lightly shook her head to hold them back. "He was." Finally, she wasn't able to hold the single tear that fell from her eye.
Stefan wiped it away with his thumb and lowered his head to lay a kiss on the spot. "I love you." The whisper left his lips before he gently pressed them to hers.
Jeremy turned to Bonnie and exchanged an accomplice look with her, and then rolled his eyes. These two… Their honeymoon would be interesting considering they were still in the honeymoon phase. He walked towards them and cleared his throat emphatically, breaking them out of their bubble.
They grudgingly pulled away and Elena focused all her attention on Jeremy. Stefan was a different matter, but she had yet to receive her brother's blessing. Jeremy smiled softly at her and wrapped an arm around her back. Releasing her fiancé's hand, Elena hugged her brother back.
"Congratulations." Jeremy whispered into her ear.
/
Damon was lying down on his bed, his head resting on two propped pillows, an inclined bottle of whisky in the hand. He brought the bottle to his mouth and drank a long gulp.
He felt terrible, and not because of the high amount of alcohol he had ingurgitated in the past forty-eight hours. Elena and Stefan were getting married… Just when he thought things couldn't get worse… The universe always had a way of punching him in the face.
This was his worst nightmare becoming reality, and he had no idea how to deal with it. What was he supposed to do? Sit and wait for the inevitable to happen? Watch Elena marry someone else? Watch Elena marry his brother?! Watch her pledge her life to him? Maybe that was what he needed after all. Maybe that would provide him with closure: make him realize that they were really over, for good, that there was no going back.
But Damon didn't know if he had it in himself to do that. He loved Elena. He had never loved anyone the way he loved her, not even Katherine. He never knew he was capable of so much love. He wasn't sure he was ready to give that up forever.
So what was his option? Do everything in his power to win Elena back. But was it doable? And more importantly, was it worth it? Was he willing to take the risk of losing both Stefan and Elena for trying to ruin their relationship once again?
Elena had given him no indication whatsoever that she still had feelings for him since his return. If anything, she had been rather effusive with Stefan, asserting their love before him conspicuously. He had no idea if he still stood a chance.
What made everything worse was that Damon felt like he had brought this on himself. He felt like he had literally handed Elena to Stefan, and that drove him insane. He knew that he had given up on her, that he had given up on them, and that it was a decision he would certainly spend the rest of his life regretting if he didn't do something about it. He had fought so hard to win her affections, but once he finally had her, he had been unable to fight to keep her.
Damon closed his eyes and had another gulp of whisky. The alcohol didn't even have an effect anymore at this point, and his pain hit him full force. Damon felt empty and broken inside. He was sinking in despair with no hope. He felt like an abandoned sailing boat on the sea, left to the waves' whims.
He heard his door open and someone enter, so he opened his eyes and turned his head in direction of the door to see who it was. He briefly closed his eyes when he saw Caroline, but managed not to sigh.
"I'm not in the mood to talk." He said, trying and failing to keep his voice cool.
"That's perfect." She said with a fake smile. "You can listen." She shut the door with a slam and crossed her arms over her chest.
Damon turned his head to her, his eyes narrowed in a glare. The anger in his eyes honestly didn't rival with the one in hers.
Caroline walked over to Damon's bed, small step by small step, fuming, contempt etched on her face. "What the hell is wrong with you?" She asked in the most disgusted voice Damon had ever heard from her. "What makes you think you can act like this?" Her eyebrows were knit in deep confusion. She would obviously never understand Damon. The only reason she kept trying to was Stefan. She was willing to do so much for Stefan and it was beyond her understanding that his own brother wasn't willing to put his feelings aside for a single night for his little brother's sake. It appalled her.
"Your brother just got engaged." Caroline said with emphasis, her brows raised and her eyes widened in a pointed stare. "I don't care how you feel about the bride. You should be downstairs celebrating with him, congratulating him. And you know what would be even better?" She rhetorically asked him, cocking her head to one side. "If you actually meant it. But it's okay if you don't. The least you could do… is pretend, Damon!" She spoke his mind without sparing him.
Damon listened to Caroline without responding, her words like knives driven in an already wounded spot. She was right. He was aware that she was right, and he knew that if the situations were reverse, Stefan would eat his feelings and be there for him. That is what differentiated them. Damon just couldn't be the better man.
That only comforted him in his thought that Elena was better off with Stefan. Damon loved Elena, just as much as Stefan did, he believed, but somehow, Stefan's love was better.
He sighed almost imperceptibly and raised the whiskey to his lips, drinking down yet another gulp.
As he didn't react to her words, Caroline eyed him head to foot in disdain, utterly disbelieving. He was a worse human being than she ever would have thought. He made Klaus look like Gandhi. What was his excuse for being so despicable and leading such a miserable life?
Beside herself with anger, Caroline reached out, took the whisky bottle out of Damon's hands, and threw it across the room. It went to crash against the wall.
"You're not going to say anything?!" She yelled at him. "You're just going to sit there and feel sorry for yourself?!" She was furious.
Damon raised his head at Caroline and glared at her. She was seriously pushing him now.
She cocked her head to one side and her lips lifted into a derisive smile. "Well, I guess somebody's got to, even if it's just you, right?" She said with bite.
Damon's behavior was so pathetic, but Caroline refused to be prompted by a feeling of pity for him. He didn't even deserve that. Besides, he was doing a pretty good job at feeling sorry for himself. He didn't need help.
"Why are you acting like this, Damon?" Here she was again: trying to reason with him, striving –for God knew what reason – to understand him. "What point are you trying to make?" She asked, shaking her head in emphasis.
She didn't want to believe that he cared so little about his own brother. Someone as special as Stefan…
"You realize it's not going through, right?" Caroline raised her eyebrows at him. "The only one who is affected by your attitude is Stefan." She paused. "And Elena indirectly because she loves him. But that's it Damon, no one else gives a damn. No one else cares. Nobody gives you the time of their day. None of us feel sorry for you." She coldly informed.
It was harsh, but it was the truth, and maybe, he needed to hear it.
"I don't know what you're trying to do, Damon, but I guarantee you it won't work." Caroline warned Damon. "You are not going to ruin this for Stefan and Elena. Not their wedding and sure as hell not their relationship!" She said, her eyes blazing with fire. She was serious. She was not going to let Damon come between Stefan and Elena again. That was out of question. "You did that once, and it was more than enough. It is NOT happening again. I won't let it." Caroline articulated, emphasizing her point.
/
"What did you want to talk to me about?" Bonnie asked, turning to face Klaus.
He had asked her to follow him outside to talk to her away from indiscreet ears when no one was looking. They had walked a little away from the Boarding House and were now out of hearing range.
"Do you know a Vincent?" Klaus bluntly asked her.
Bonnie blinked a few times before making sure she had heard correctly, "Excuse me?"
"A Vincent." He repeated. "Do you know one?"
"I, I – Why do you ask?" Bonnie stammered, shaking her head.
Klaus briefly pulled his eyebrows together. Interesting. Bonnie looked almost as troubled as Caroline at the mention of this person's name. Then again, Klaus wasn't familiar enough with Bonnie to interpret her reaction as troubled, but he simply couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.
"Is that a yes or no?"
"Why do you ask?" She insisted.
"Do you know the man or not, Bonnie?" Klaus raised his voice, getting irritated, and not appreciating her eluding his question.
"No." She finally answered.
"Are you sure?" He questioned.
"I know who I know." Bonnie responded dryly, glaring at him. "Why do you ask?"
"Thank you, Bonnie." Klaus acknowledged, and turned to walk back towards the mansion.
Before she could help herself, Bonnie seized his arm, stopping him from walking away from her. Klaus looked at her hand on his arm and then back up at her with a raised eyebrow. Bonnie immediately loosened her grip on him, remembering who she was dealing with.
She took a step backwards and bravely said, "I answered your question. Answer mine."
Klaus eyed her warily. "You lived with Caroline in Boston for a while, and you are her best friend. I thought you might know him." He simply explained.
"So he's related to Caroline?" Bonnie asked.
"In some regards." Klaus answered.
Bonnie tilted her chin up and stared at Klaus intently. "Caroline told you about him?" She inquired.
'I wish! If she had, I could have saved myself this conversation.' Klaus thought to himself. "I brought you here to ask you a question, Miss Bennett, not the way around. The inquisition is over." He declared.
Bonnie didn't miss the change in his tone and his sudden formality. "Klaus!" She called, and he half-turned his body towards her, already a few steps away from her.
She turned to him as well so she could face him. "Is Caroline okay?" She asked, the corners of her eyes folded in concern.
Klaus cocked his head to the side. He could tell that Bonnie was genuinely worried about Caroline and that only comforted him in his thought that there was indeed reason for worry, and it told him that Bonnie wasn't being a hundred percent truthful.
He decided for a semi-honest answer, "Caroline is always more than okay, and completely safe with me. I see to that."
Bonnie nodded. She knew that was the truth. Klaus was a dangerous man, but his affection for Caroline prevailed on his despicable ways and on his temper. She knew her friend was safe with him. She was intuitive enough to know that there wasn't anything he wouldn't do for her, and she did not believe Klaus could ever –intentionally- hurt Caroline, not without hurting himself. The fact was, as long as they were together, Bonnie didn't have much to worry about. Klaus was invincible after all. Wasn't he?
They returned to the boarding house about five minutes apart and spent the rest of the evening celebrating Elena's birthday and Stefan and Elena's engagement between close friends.
Thanks to those of you who let me know they're still reading and shared their thoughts with me.
You guys know by now that I don't write unless you remind me to and motivate me, so... to your keyboards!
Luah 07: I'm glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for reviewing.
missHa1004: Yayy! I managed to intrigue you! Mission accomplished. Don't worry, you will get some answers.
justine: Well, I guess you'll have to wait and see now, won't you? Thanks.
Melissa: Aww, thank you so much! Not promising anything as far as Kennett is concerned. Elijah will be back... eventually.
.10: I update some previous chapters, that's probably why. Sorry about that. Well, it got you to review, didn't it?
tippy093: Compulsion didn't even cross my mind to be honest. I want to believe they're past that.
Toriaz: Thank you! I'm so glad. I will do my best.
the-great-pretender-09: I'm honestly not headed down a Rebekah/Damon road. I'm not that predictable. Thanks for the review.
anotherlifeofmine: Your review made me want to cry. Thank you so much.
BethanyRose92: Sorry I kept you waiting for so long. Thanks for reviewing.