Woo, finally got this wrote and posted!

I think this will be the last chapter, unless any suggestions are made that I just love.

There will be an epilogue though!

I have loved reading y'all's reviews, and Joe you like this chapter too! :)

Elena Gilbert had always known one thing to be true.

Time stretched on to forever when you were sad.

Minutes could feel like years, on those long nights you'd spend lying awake, covered in tears, questioning your choices in life.

She'd had plenty of those nights.

And they never failed to drag the hours on and on.

So why shouldn't the opposite be true as well?

A new fact of life that she was quickly finding to be true.

Time flies when you're happy.

And she'd never known happiness like this.

Chris had been different since getting out of the hospital last month.

He was calmer, happier, and she was loving his smile each morning.

Maybe it was because Byron had finally decided to give him a real chance, or maybe it was because their family situation had improved so much.

Or maybe he was just happy in general, like she was.

His cast had been removed weeks ago, and the coach was helping him work with the school's trainer to insure baseball would do no damage.

April was also doing better.

Her rib had mostly mended, and her leg's splint had been removed, though she'd always have a scar from the surgery.

She came over occasionally, for dinner, but not too often, seeing as Chris had been serving his time until last week.

He was now with Tyler and Jeremy at Elena's parents house, Grayson insisting, so they could all watch the big game.

He'd even invited Damon.

Of all the events that had taken place during the mayhem of everything, that had surprised her the most.

Her father had apologized to Damon.

Had actually held out the olive branch.

She'd cried when Damon told her.

And Damon...

Damon was absolutely perfect.

She'd never loved him more in the entirety of her life than she did now.

He'd gotten them through the recovery, had finished the Firebird with Chris, but refused to let him test drive it until after Christmas, and take it to school until his birthday, which was still a few months away.

Chris was alright with it.

As far as cars went, Damon's was salvageable.

She didn't understand how, but he'd been able to have it rebuilt from the ground up.

It sat in the front drive, next to hers.

She had jokingly told him that she was getting him a gift card for the window repair shop, for Christmas.

He'd insisted that he kept the man in business.

She'd laughed.

It was crazy to think that Christmas was just around the corner.

Thanksgiving had been simple enough this year. Out to lunch with her parents, then dinner at the Salvatore's.

They'd been eating leftovers for days now.

Not that anyone was complaining.

Elena took advantage of the now rare time she had being home alone, and cleaned her house.

It didn't take long, with the size, but living with two males was messier than living with the one.

She scrubbed, washed, folded, and dusted everything in sight.

Once she was satisfied, she took a quick shower, using her new vanilla body wash.

It was quickly becoming Damon's favorite, and she loved any chance to tease him.

She'd just finished blow drying her hair and had thrown on her favorite pair of dark wash jeans when she heard the front door open.

Hurried whispers filled the hall, so she slipped on a tank top and a light sweater before making her way toward the voices.

Chris and Damon stood close to the door, in a heavy whispered discussion.

"You're back early," she announced her presence, and they both turned, looking over at her.

Damon's face broke into his usual playful smirk, "Game got cut short."

She just rose a brow, letting him know that she had seen them whispering.

"Uhhu...So, what's going on?"

"Nothing," the both chimed, a little too quickly.

She fought back a laugh at their "busted" expression, as she placed a hand on her hip.

Damon amended, "Nothing you need to worry about."

His gaze swept over her, "You look nice...going somewhere?"

She shook her head at his poor attempt of distraction.

"Nice try. Now spill."

She narrowed her eyes when Damon winced and Chris fidgeted.

She rolled her eyes, "Oh come on, it can't be that bad."

Chris and Damon shared a look.

She swallowed, "Can it?"

Chris shrugged at his dad, and Damon nodded, then turned back to her.

"It's nothing bad," he sighed, "But it was meant to be a surprise."

She blushed, "Oh..."

Chris stepped forward, "Well, I guess this way, she can help us solve that problem we were talking about."

Damon nodded, "If the you-know-what will have room in the you-know-where?"

Chris nodded, "Yeah, and where the other you-know-what's are so we can get the you-know-where ready for the other you-know-what."

Elena groaned, "Are you two being cryptic on purpose?"

"Maybe," Chris laughed.

Damon grinned, "Just grab your coat. We'll show you."

She eyed him suspiciously, but did as he said, and soon, they were walking out.

A light snow had began to fall, a little of it sticking to the ground, and she was sure that by tomorrow, if it continued, they'd have a good couple inches.

She smiled at that.

Nothing was more beautiful than seeing the town come alive in a winter wonderland, and just before Christmas.

Damon opened the door to his camaro, and she climbed in, Chris getting in the back.

"So, where are we going?"

Damon leaned over, placing a chaste kiss to her lips, "You'll see."

She smiled in anticipation, sitting back into her seat.

There was no telling what her boys were up to.

Damon couldn't help but smile, after seeing the grin on Elena's face.

She was contagious like that.

He just hoped she liked her surprise.

It had meant to wait until Christmas, where he and Chris would have plenty of time to get it ready, but he figured Elena might want a final say so, before any purchases were made.

Especially a purchase as big as a two story, four bedroom, three and a half bath, Victorian styled manor.

He and Chris had decided on the one, out of the handful of others they'd had offers on, because it had an extremely homely feel.

The other perks included it's proximity to Stefan and Caroline's place, it's massive back yard, it's enormous kitchen, the fireplaces, and newly redone master bath.

Personally, Damon couldn't wait to show Elena that.

They turned down the last necessary street, where trees overlapped over the road and saw the circle drive open at the end.

Damon pulled up into it and parked.

The wrap around porch looked as beautifully welcoming as it had two days ago when he and Chris had checked it out.

Snow fell onto the yard, making it look like a place from a hallmark card.

It was perfect.

Elena's eyebrows had pulled together in confusion.

"Um, Damon, what are we doing here?"

He just motioned for her to get out, before opening his own door.

Chris followed his lead, bouncing excitedly as they walked up to the stairs.

Damon slipped his hand into Elena's as they reached the large front arched door.

"Who lives here?" She questioned, giving the place a glance over.

Damon winked at Chris, who took that as his cue.

"We do!"

Elena's gaze shot to him, "Wh...what?"

Damon let go of her hand, bringing her attention back to him, and reached into his pocket, and pulled out a key.

"We live here," Damon explained, sticking the key into the lock, "Or at least we will, once I pay the other half of the deposit."

Ignoring her shocked expression, he pushed the door open, then let Chris inside.

Elena lingered there in the doorway, "What do you mean?"

He hesitated, suddenly doubting his decision.

"Don't you like it?"

He watched as she swallowed, her hand grazing over the woodwork of the arch, "It's...breathtaking."

He let out a relieved breath, but she continued, "I don't understand. Why are you putting a deposit on a place like...this?"

He stepped back outside, taking her hands into his.

Chris had already wandered upstairs, so he took his time kissing her now.

He played with her lips, wrapping his arms around her, until she was melted butter against him.

"You deserve a place like this," he told her, finally, "If you decide you'd rather keep the house we have now, I'll respect your choice, and tell the seller I've changed my mind, but I really wish you'd consider this."

She exhaled, "It's beautiful, Damon, but don't you think it's a little...much?"

He grinned, "Yeah, I kinda do. But when's the last time you've allowed yourself some luxury, Elena? Money's not an issue, and I want to do this. For you, for us, for our son."

She swallowed looking around at the house again.

Then her gaze met his, with a sheen of tears, "Thank you."

He just smiled and pulled her into his chest, "You're welcome, baby. But for the record, Chris had already decided he wanted the house. I doubt you would have had any real say."

She laughed, smiling up at him, "Well in that case, I better just surrender, huh?"

"That's right," Damon picked her up, making her squeal, "And in honor of your surrender, may I walk you across the threshold, my lady?"

She giggled, "You may, kind sir."

He pressed his lips to hers in a lingering kiss as he walked inside, twirling her a little as he did so.

Then he sat her down so she too could explore their future home.

Home.

God, how he loved the sound of that.

Elena couldn't believe her eyes as she looked around.

The foyer they stood in opened to an enormous family room, the size of her living room and kitchen combined.

A staircase was set in the corner, twisting out of site to the second floor, but she held off, in exchange for entering a kitchen big enough to rival the Salvatore's, and that was saying something.

She ran her hand over the granite marble of the island, before skirting along to the next room.

It was the dining room, large, with stained glass windows covering the back wall, letting in what little sun shone through the snowfall.

It rounded to a hallway, which held a half bath, and a linen closet, before opening back to the living room.

"What do you think?" Damon asked.

He'd been following her, letting her gaze at everything in wonder.

"It's a lot to take in," she stated, starting up the stairs, "But what's not to like?!"

He grinned, sticking close behind her.

"These are the bedrooms," Damon told her, "For the most part."

The top of the staircase flattened to a platform, directly in front of a glass door that opened to a balcony, where Chris was standing.

He saw them, and grinned, "Soooo whatcha think?"

She smiled, but Damon answered, "We're getting it."

"Yes!" Her son exclaimed, as he and Damon highfived. She shook her head at them, but Chris was too excited to care.

"I'll show you my room," he started, pulling her inside again.

Damon followed close behind as Chris opened one door after another along the way.

"This is the guest bath, it's huge, and the spare room, here."

She was impressed by the size, but had little time to marvel as Chris led her along, "My room has a bathroom too, but Dad said we could turn this room into a game room, or a music room."

The door he'd opened showed a spacious studio with lots of windows.

She smiled, imagining them playing the guitar together up here.

"And, this," he opened the second to the last door on the right, "This will be my room."

Elena stepped inside, impressed.

It was double the size of his old one, held an enormous walk in closet, and it's own bathroom, that was roughly as big as hers back home.

"Wow," she told him, "This is huge!"

Chris nodded, "It's awesome!"

Damon's hand cupped her waist then, his head leaning down to whisper in her ear, "Wait until you see ours."

She looked up at him, "Show me."

He took her hand, leading her down the hall, past a few more closets and storage spaces, until they reached the last door on the left.

He opened it, and Elena felt her mouth fall.

The room was breathtaking. The biggest in the house, a wall of windows directly across from them, a polished wooden floor, and two walk in closets.

She made her way across the room, to the place it opened to the bathroom.

A full glass shower, double sinks, and a spacious Victorian tub were spread out across the tile, and she had to lean back against Damon to take it all in.

"This is ours," she breathed out.

He kissed her head, "Yes, it is. All ours."

She turned in his arms, "When can we move in?"

"As soon as tomorrow," he grinned, "But Chris and I were going to wait until we'd gotten it decorated for Christmas. Had a tree picked out and everything. It was going to be a surprise."

She laughed throwing her arms around him, "Oh, I love you Mr. Salvatore!"

He held her tightly, "And I love you, Mrs. Salvatore."

Elena froze as his words registered with her, and she pulled back, looking at him.

"Damon...I think you got that wrong."

His smile fell away as his face grew serious, "No, I didn't."

She let out a laugh, "Did you forget I was still a Gilbert, then?"

He swallowed, "No, but I meant what I said when I told you that I wanted you in my life forever."

Her breathing hitched as she began to understand, "I want that too."

He reached a hand up, cupping her face, his eyes intense, "I love you, Elena. So much. And one day, soon, I will change your name to Salvatore. But there are things I need to do first. To do it right."

She chuckled with a shaky breath, "When have we ever done anything the right way?"

He smiled, "It's not our strong suit, but it is something we deserve. I will buy you a ring, plan something creative, with all of our family and friends. I'll make sure it's everything you've ever dreamed. And I'll talk to Chris before. As far as I'm concerned, he's the only one who's opinion matters. The only one with the right to give me your hand."

Tears were in Elena's eyes again, as she nodded, "I think he'd like that...All of it...It's so perfect and happy."

Damon lifted her chin, kissing her, "Which is all that I want for you, Elena, to be happy."

She smiled against him, "Then kiss me again."

He obliged, crushing her into him, where their lips danced together until their teenage son cleared his throat.

"You know, I'd say get a room, buuuuut-"

Elena laughed, and Damon shook his head, kissing her once more.

The end!

I hope you guys liked it!

Can't wait to hear your thoughts, and I'll try to get the epilogue up soon! :)