Chapter 17-Ending

Stefan

It has been eight months. Eight long months for him. Eight long months since Elena and Damon had gotten together. He had been counting. It was pathetic and creepy, but he counted anyway.

Stefan rubbed his eyes and poured himself another drink from Damon's collection. Ever since he and Elena broke up, he had been drinking. A lot, too. He didn't want to, of course. It wasn't like him to be like this, but he couldn't help it. He needed something to ease the pain, and the only solution was drinking. He wished he could switch off his feelings, but somehow he couldn't. Maybe that was because he could never switch off his feelings when it came to Elena.

Stefan settled back onto the couch in the Boarding House and recounted the days again in his head.

Their last anniversary, Damon had taken Elena to Hawaii. They came back wearing those flowery, tacky shirts that Stefan never liked. Elena couldn't stop talking about it for weeks. They were planning to go there again when she has time.

The month before that had been Elena's birthday. Damon ran all over the place and threw her a surprise party. Bit common and uncreative, really, but Elena was so happy. They had the party at The Grill. Stefan was there, of course. Elena was all "What are we doing here, Damon? I thought we were going to dinner together.", and then when they walked in, everyone yelled "Surprise!", which Stefan thought was pretty stupid. But Elena was really surprised. She went around hugging everyone, even him, though it was a short one, and the whole evening went by beautifully. Stefan could tell Damon was pleased with himself for that because Elena kissed him smack on the mouth in front of everybody. Stefan had looked away purposely, though. It still hurt him to see them together, even though he was trying very hard to be happy for them.

And the month before that…Damon had gotten her a puppy. One of those cute fluffy ones with floppy ears. A Labrador, maybe, he couldn't remember. Elena was squealing all over the place. She adored it. Stefan, on the other hand, didn't really get attached to the puppy. Since he mostly hunted for blood, it was weird for him to be so close to an animal and not attack it. And in a way, he thinks the puppy can sense that about him. It never really liked him whenever he was there.

And the month before…Stefan rubbed his temples. He couldn't remember. Was that the month where Damon took her to visit Rose? Or was that the time they made an album together consisting of all of their pictures together? So many memories, yet they weren't even his. They belonged to Damon and Elena. He gulped down the rest of his drink and poured another cup. He hated the way he'd become. It had been eight months, and yet, here he was, still sulking.

To say the truth, he never thought Damon and Elena would last this long. It was Damon, for God's sakes. But reality proved him wrong. They were still together, and they were still so happy with each other. Elena came over to the Boarding House constantly. Whenever they went into the bedroom, Stefan would go hunting. Sometimes, even though he was far away, he could still hear them in his head.

Damon spent nights at Elena's frequently as well. The surprise birthday party moved Jenna to tears, and she was treating Damon like an old friend now. Even Jeremy came around after what Damon did for his sister. It seemed like the couple had gained everyone's blessings. Well, everyone's except his. Stefan thought bitterly.

He reached for the Whiskey again, but found it empty. He had drained every drop of Damon's alcohol. Swinging his jacket over his shoulder, he decided to head to The Grill to order a few more drinks before calling it a day.

It took him mere seconds to get to The Grill. But as soon as he walked in, he knew he made a mistake coming here.

Elena was there.

She was alone though, and she was shooting pool all by herself, her lips pursed in concentration. Stefan stared at her for a few minutes. She had always been bad at pool. He thought melancholy. He wondered whether he should go up to her and say hi. Just because they were broken up didn't mean they weren't friends. They still talked and everything, but there was this unsaid distance between them. Elena never mentioned it, but he could feel it slowly growing. She had put him in the "Friend Zone", and she made it very clear that she didn't want him to cross that line.

"Excuse me, Miss," Stefan said to a waitress walking by. He needed a drink if he wanted to talk to Elena and act normal at the same time, "I'd like a Scotch on the roc –"

He stopped abruptly.

Damon had arrived. He seemed to appear out of nowhere right in front of Stefan with his back to him. Elena's whole face lit up at the sight of Damon. Stefan watched in wonder as her eyes sparkled and glittered under the light. She'd never looked at him this way all the times they were together. She was smiling so widely that he could count her teeth. Damon walked towards her immediately, and she leaned in for a kiss, which Damon obliged happily.

They were smiling and kissing at the same time, the scene so romantic and movie-like that Stefan felt a little uneasy at witnessing it. He watched Damon walk behind her and lean with her against the table, showing her how to play pool properly. Elena laughed as one of his hands held her own and the other on her waist. Damon smirked and kissed her cheek, making Elena smile again.

A few feet away from them, Stefan felt glued to the floor. He wanted to move, to give them privacy, but he couldn't. He kept watching them. Neither of them took notice of him because they were so lost in each other's worlds. Stefan could hear Damon's whispers in Elena's ears, and he could hear her replies as well. A strange feeling rose up inside him. This was the first time in eight months that he didn't feel like getting drunk. Elena was so happy with Damon. What else was there? What else mattered? He loved her, he did, and he probably always will, but he no longer felt like sabotaging her relationship with Damon. This simple scene in front of him proved that they were, as much as he hated to admit it, prefect for each other.

Stefan watched them for a few more seconds before turning around and leaving them in their own paradise.

"Um…You wanted a drink?" The waitress stopped him and asked him hesitantly.

Stefan looked at her, "…No." He said softly, his eyes tracing over to the happy couple oblivious to his presence again, "No, I'm fine, thanks." He said to the waitress politely.

And then he walked out the door.

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…And they lived happily ever after. The end! I finished it! Yaaaay! (And YES, the ending is adapted from Stefan's dream/nightmare from the original TV show) I wanted to thank a few people for their feedbacks and reviews. BadBoysAreBest, Miss Snazzy, mmchamp12, Fantasy Obsession, laurayette4445, remeyqueen74, Danni1989, Crimson-Kiss17, Rosesareforever, smithsbabe65, Barbara SGB, vampsaywhat, damons-hot-as-hell, Elmo13, LoveEpicLove…ect. Thank you guys so much!

Thank you all for reading! Hope you enjoyed it. :P

Again, the new story is called Worlds of You. Read that too if you feel like it! I can't promise it'll be good, but I will definitely try my best. ;)

See you guys soon in a new story!