Stefan was crumbling.
It had been almost a whole week since the hospital and Elena had still not spoken a single word.
The sight of her so beseeched with grief caused a physical ache to rip through his chest.

She hasn't spoken, eaten anything, or even slept and Stefan honestly had no idea what to do.
The only time he has heard her speak is in her nightmares, although when she wakes up she is back in the same state again.
He was completely at a loss.

There were at least a dozen untouched mugs filled with cold tea on her nightstand from all the times Stefan attempted to get her to drink.
He just continued to bring up warm tea every few hours in hopes that she would eventually drink something.

Nothing seemed to be working and Stefan had become sick with worry.
She was showing zero signs of improvement and Stefan honestly had no idea what to do.

He would stay up late into the night doing everything possible to coax her to sleep, but she wouldn't fall.
One night out of sheer desperation he even tried to sing to her, but his efforts were futile.

Every single day he just lied in bed with her and held her as she continued to stare blankly at the wall.
There was nothing Stefan could do except wait for her to be ready.

"I'll be right back," Stefan whispered to her as he kissed her on the cheek before making his way to the restroom.
He quickly gathered all of the necessary supplies in his arms before making his way back to Elena.
He sat down on the bed next to her and gently cleansed her face with a warm washcloth.
He softly wiped her skin making sure that everywhere was clean before drying it off.
Then he took her hairbrush and softly ran it through her short hair making sure to remove all of the tangles.
After that, he took off the hoodie that she had been wearing all day, and despite the fact that she hadn't done anything in it, he still dressed her in a fresh one.
Finally, he pulled down her pants to change her pad, and he made sure that she didn't see the old one as he was putting on the new one.

Every single night Stefan did this same exact routine for Elena.
He knew that it was his responsibility to care for her when she couldn't do it for herself.

Then he came back to bed and held her like he did every single night.
He just wrapped his arms around her unmoving body, doing everything in his power to make her feel loved.

After a while Stefan's eyes became heavy, although just as sleep was about to take over an idea hit him.
He reached into the drawer of his side table and pulled out the tiny Dr. Suess book he read to Elena all those weeks ago back in his old home.
He remembered how much comfort that little book brought her, and he prayed with everything in him that it could have the same effect on her now.

He cleared his throat and began to read the story.
He read and read and nothing changed.
Page after page went by and her back was still turned to him and there were no signs of emotion on her face.

Finally Stefan flipped to the last page and became extremely disheartened.
He really thought that this would work.
He took a deep shaky breath and read the last page with a heavy heart.
The only thing he wants in this world is to see his beautiful girl smile again.
He hates this, he really really hates this.

Just after he read the concluding line he closed the book and placed it back on the side table.
Defeatedly Stefan slouched back onto the bed, although right as he lied down he could feel the mattress shaking slightly underneath him.
He quickly looked over at her to see her shoulders shaking and he could hear the faintest sniffle coming from her body.

After a few moments Elena turned her body to face Stefan for the first time in days.
The look in her eyes caused Stefan's heart to break.
She looked so incredibly sad as she looked up at him.
Tears filled her big brown eyes and her lip quivered slightly as she continued to shake.
Finally a weak whimper escaped her lips and that was all it took for Stefan to break down completely.

He engulfed her small body in his arms, and tears streamed down his cheeks as she returned his embrace for the first time in days.
She clutched onto his shirt with all her might as she shook in his arms trying her best to hold back her tears.
She knew that if she broke down now she may never get it back together.

Stefan could immediately tell what was going on, and he needed her to know that it was okay to break down.
"Oh sweetheart," Stefan rasped as he gently caressed her hair, "It's okay to cry."

Elena just weakly shook her head against his chest.
She knew that if she opened her mouth to speak a single word then she wouldn't be able to stop her tears.

"Shhh it's okay," Stefan soothed, "I'm here Lena, let it all out angel."

Elena just breathed in a shaky breath to compose herself, although when she exhaled a sob escaped her lips.
She quickly covered her mouth with her hand, although by then it was too late.
She buried her head in Stefan's chest as every emotion that she has pent up over the past few days unleashed itself.
All of the pain that came along with losing her child, as well as the guilt for making Stefan go through everything he just did came out, and all she could do was sob.

Stefan just held her tighter as she cried doing everything in his power to soothe her.
He knew that the only way for her to heal was for her to let out all of her emotions.

She cried so hard that her sobs became silent against his chest.
All he could feel were her tears staining his shirt and her body convulsing in his arms.
He could feel his heart breaking more in his chest with every passing second she felt this way.
There was nothing that he could do for her except hold her tightly in his embrace.

He was so extremely worried about her for the past couple of days when she refused to feel, although now he caught himself almost wishing that she could go back to that state.
Seeing her in this much pain ripped a hole in Stefan's chest, and he would do anything to take it all away.
He thought he would feel relief when she finally came back to him, although the only thing he could feel was complete and total pain.
He loves her so much and the thought of her hurting this badly absolutely killed him.

"S-sorry S-Stef, I-I… s-s-sorry, s-so s-sorry," Elena cried incoherently as she continued to heave against his chest.

"No no no baby, don't, please don't apologize," he cooed with anguish filling his voice.

"M-My fault, o-our b-b-baby, s-s-s-sorry," she sobbed heavily into his being.

"Oh Lena," Stefan croaked, "None of this was your fault, my sweet love. Don't ever blame yourself. Please."

All she responded with was more cries as she shook her head against his chest.
Nothing could come out of her mouth except small gasps and sobs.

Stefan held her tighter in his arms doing everything he could to provide her with comfort.
He stroked her hair as she sobbed, whispering sweet nothings into her ear trying to ease her pain.

Eventually her shaking slowed down in his arms and her breathing began to steady signifying that she was on the verge of falling asleep.
She had cried for so long that her body was completely worn out.
Stefan continued to stroke her hair while soothingly hushing her against his chest.

"Go to sleep my sweet angel," he whispered as he delicately kissed her forehead trying to hold back his tears, "I love you so much."

Elena pressed herself closer to him relishing in the comfort of his embrace before finally falling asleep.