As he rounded the corner, he heard Elena retch. "Elena?" She was squatted down heaving into the toilet.

Damon sped over to Elena, squatting down next to her in concern. "Are you OK?"

She turned her head slightly to look at him. Her face was very pale, and she was trying to hold back another heave. She managed to get out, "Uh, it must have been the motion."

Damon pulled her hair away just in time for her to retch again, only this time nothing came out. He gently rubbed her back, not knowing what else to do to help her. "Can…I …get you anything? Maybe you'd feel better if you had something on your stomach."

Elena shook her head, quickly extinguishing that idea. "No, no the thought of food right now…" She heaved again. After a few minutes, she managed to get her dry heaving under control and started to stand up, stumbling from weakness. Damon grabbed her arm, supporting her back to keep her from falling. "Whoa! I guess I got up too quickly," she said. She took a couple of deep breaths before attempting to move again. "I'm OK now, really." She made her way over to the sink to get a glass of water.

Damon looked into the toilet, grimacing before he flushed. There's nothing even in there.

Elena started opening the drawers under the sink. "Do you have any mouthwash?" Damon reached into the cabinet on the wall and handed her the bottle. She took a swig from the cup and rinsed her mouth out in the sink before splashing water on her face.

He'd been around long enough to know that morning sickness was normal for someone who was pregnant, but he never witnessed it before. Watching her suffer made him feel so helpless, which was a feeling he wasn't used to. Looking at her in the mirror with concern, he said, "Maybe you should just take it easy today."

Wiping her face with a towel, she shook her head. "No, I have to go to class."

"So, skip it."

"I can't. I skipped yesterday to see Meredith remember?"

Grrr she can be so stubborn sometimes. "Who cares about college right now? You've got more important things to worry about," he countered, pointing to her stomach.

"Damon, I need to get back to my normal routine. If I suddenly stop going to my classes, it will look suspicious. We want to keep this a secret as long as we can, don't we?"

"Fine. Then I'll go with you."

Exasperated, she said, "Damon, you can't follow me around all day. That'll raise more suspicion."

Frustrated, he said, "You know it's not going to take Klaus long to figure out you're pregnant. He'll know the first time he's near you."

Elena looked down at her stomach. "But I'm not even showing yet."

"That's not what I'm talking about. If I can hear the baby's heartbeat so can he, so can Caroline, and so can Tyler."

A look of concern came over her face. "I hadn't thought about that. But as long as I'm in a room full of people, I should be safe. I mean their heartbeats will drown his out right?"

"We can't take that chance. I'm not letting you go to school unprotected."

"Look, Bonnie will be with me. She's the one who did the spell, so the least she can do is keep me safe, while I'm at school."

"After that business she did with the spell, I'm not so sure I trust Judgey these days."

Elena countered his snarky comment. "Well I can't hide out for the next 7 months." The look on Damon's face told her that's exactly what he wanted her to do. She said firmly, "I'm NOT hiding out for 7 months. So what if we don't keep the actual pregnancy a secret? What if we let people know I'm pregnant, but just not tell them the whole truth?"

He looked at her like she was being ridiculous. "Yeah, and where are you going to come up with a father out of the blue? Are you going to say it's the next immaculate conception? Because if you say I'm the father, Klaus will definitely know something is up. No vampire has reproduced before remember?"

She scowled at him. "What if I say we got into a fight and split up for a few days? I could say I was upset and went to visit Matt at school. We got drunk, and we slept together."

He scoffed, "You know Caroline will be on the phone chewing Matt out the second she hears that."

Elena said, "So, I'll call Matt so he knows what to say."

"Elena, the idea is to keep the truth from as many people as possible. The more people you tell the greater the chance is Klaus will find out the truth."

"Well, I can't say I just picked up some random stranger at the bar for a one night stand."

Damon snorted. "No one would believe that anyway."

Elena continued to think hard. "There has to be something else. What if I say I still wanted kids, but as long as we're together, I knew that wouldn't happen. So, I got a donor."

He looked at her like she was insane. "Ok, so far that is the most ridiculously, unbelievable thing you've come up with."

She got mad at his criticism. "I don't hear you coming up with any ideas."

He breathed out in frustration. "Fine. We say you pledged a sorority, and you went to a rush party, where you played a drinking game. One of the fraternity guys slipped something in your drink, and you blacked out."

Her eyes lit up. "And when I woke up, my clothes were disheveled, and I couldn't remember what happened. A few weeks later, I found out I was pregnant."

Damon finished the scenario. "Then I hunted the fraternity guy down and tortured him before killing him."

She gave him a rye smile. "That part is certainly believable."

Damon laughed sarcastically. "Ha, ha. It's not pretty, but it'll have to do."

Elena said, "Actually, I think it's a pretty good story."

He brushed her hair back from her face, as Elena leaned up to give him a quick kiss. When their lips parted, he teased, "If you're going to class, I suggest you wash up first. You have sex hair."

Elena tilted her head to the side, when she looked down, and noticed his growing erection. Playfully, she removed her camisole and headed towards the shower. "Care to join me?"

Damon flashed over to her, his naked body pressing against hers from behind, so she could feel his excitement. Seductively, he whispered in her ear. "Like you even have to ask."

The shower took longer than it should've, but washing up wasn't exactly their main focus. They finished getting dressed in Damon's bedroom. Hesitantly, he said, "Hey, there's something else we should talk about. I think you should move in. I can't keep you safe if I'm not with you. Yeah, I know Bonnie will watch out for you at school, but Jeremy can't protect you at home."

Elena looked down as if she was thinking about her response. Her response was simple. She said, "Ok."

Damon was so prepared for her rejection of the idea that he was thrown off by her response. "Now look, I know… Wait, did you just say ok?"

She nodded. "Yes."

Damon gave her a distrusting look. "That was way too easy. You're not going to argue with me?"

"No Damon. I know you're just trying to look out for us. I can't afford to be stubborn about this. It's not just about me anymore."

Stunned, Damon wasn't quite sure what to say. He had expected more of an argument. "Ok then. Good."

"But…"

Damon gave her an exasperated look. "I knew there would be a "but."

Elena placed her hand on his chest to calm him. "Let me finish. All I was going to say is that I'd like to wait a few weeks before I move in. I need to tell Jeremy still. And I want to make sure I get some things settled since he'll be living on his own."

"Elena, you're moving a few miles away not out of the country. And what exactly are you planning on telling him?"

Elena paused, knowing what she was about to say wouldn't go over well. "I'm going to tell him the truth, the whole truth."

Damon let out a heavy sigh. "Didn't we just go over this? The less people who know the better remember?"

"I know, but Jeremy won't tell anyone."

"He could be tortured into it."

"No, he's on vervain. Besides, his ring will protect him. Damon, I just don't want to lie to him anymore."

Damon stared at her a minute in silence, clearly unhappy with her decision. Reluctantly, through gritted teeth, he answered. "Fine. But no one else. I mean it, not Barbie, not wolfboy, or even the quarterback. Got it?"

She nodded. "I got it."

"And I'll be staying with you until then."

"And you always say I'm stubborn." She gave him a sarcastic smile.

With that they headed downstairs. Damon gently grabbed Elena's arm, pausing before they reached the front door. "We should get you something to eat before you go."

Elena grimaced. "Uh no, my stomach is just starting to feel better. Besides, I don't have time. I still need to stop home to change."

Damon looked at her concerned. "Elena, you have to eat something."

"I will later." He looked at her like he didn't believe her. "I promise."

He conceded, "If I find out you didn't eat, I'm going to spoon feed you myself."

"Ah, and then I'll barf all over you."

He placed his hand on her back, as he walked her out the door to her car. "Wouldn't be the first time."

"You don't have to walk me to my car you know."

"Boy you have a short memory. You. Safety. Remember?" They stood next to the driver's side door, and she wrapped her hands around his waist, while he encircled her in his arms.

Elena smiled up at him. "So, you plan on shadowing my every move?"

"Hey, someone has to keep your stubborn ass out of trouble." He leaned down and kissed her softly, before she got into the car.

As she climbed into the car, she said, "I'll see you later, ok?"

"Call me when you're on your way home from class." Elena nodded and gave a quick wave goodbye, as she shut the door. Damon stood in the driveway a minute, watching her drive away.

Elena barely made it in time for class. She'd stopped home to change and attempted to eat something small like she'd promised Damon. Unfortunately, that didn't go over very well. In no time she was hovering over the toilet again. Needless to say, by the time she finished pulling herself together, she was running late for class. Fortunately, she had missed Jeremy, otherwise she would've had to take even more time to explain to him why she was so sick. Jeremy's reaction to this mess was not going to be good. Damon might want her to keep the truth from her friends, but she wasn't about to lie to her brother. He deserved to know the truth.

Elena snuck in quietly to the big lecture hall at Mystic University and found a seat next to Bonnie. Bonnie looked over at Elena sheepishly. "Hey, how are you doing?"

Elena began pulling her notebook out of her book bag. "I've been better. I've thrown up twice already, and it's not even lunch."

Bonnie winced. "I'm sorry Elena. Are you still upset with me?"

Elena looked at her in disbelief. "Are you kidding me?" She looked around to make sure no one could hear her. She gritted her teeth and said, "You placed a spell on my vampire boyfriend, so he could get me pregnant for some diabolical plan to kill the original vampire clan. Do you really expect me not to be mad?"

The professor entered before Bonnie could respond. "Good morning class. Today we'll be discussing the reason for the stock market crash, and your ideas to turn our economy around."

Bonnie mouthed, Please forgive me!

Elena pursed her lips in frustration. She nodded her head 'yes', before turning back to listen to the professor.