Story: Elena's Baby
Chapter: Secrets
Disclaimer: I don't own The Vampire Diaries, just this plot and the extra characters
"It looks like a beaver."
"No, I think it looks more like a bear."
"Why don't you get out of my room?" Kol groaned from his sleep.
Elena and Ava were staring at him from his bedside as soon as they got home after shopping. It had been two weeks since Elena's encounter with Damon's father and she could truly say that she officially felt safe enough to go out with Ava and actually have fun. Ava raised her tiny arm to lift the pillow from Kol's face and his eyes opened in a flash, his eyes boring holes into hers.
"I said, go away," Kol groaned again, shoving the pillow back onto his face. Ava giggled and looked up at Elena, wondering what she was thinking about all of this. Elena shrugged at her daughter and laughed, though in her mind she was truly concerned. Kol had begun to start neglecting his friends and family, especially Elena and Ava. He started leaving her more and more with Damon even though he had promised to be Ava's babysitter. He's been going out to parties, getting ridiculously drunk, and becoming completely sloppy.
"C'mon Kol, get up. There are things we need to do today," Elena urged. You could hear her slight motherly tone in her voice as she spoke to Kol. He didn't say a word to her; instead, he just rolled to the other side of the bed. The was pillow still covering his face and blanket down to his waist, showing his toned and bare back.
"Kol, seriously, get up. You need to clean your room, get something to eat and sober up. Let some light into your room for heaven's sake," Elena said. She turned around to open up some blinds but was stopped by Kol blurring in front of her, cutting her off from doing so.
"No, don't open them. It's too bright and my eyes can't take that," Kol said, rubbing his eyes profusely. Elena cocked her head to the side in confusion before turning around to Ava's innocent pale face, asking her to grab Kol a water bottle from the refrigerator. Ava complied and was on her way, happily skipping out of the room before Elena turned her face back to Kol's.
"You reek of booze and look like hell. Ava's senses are stronger than mine, so I know she can smell it on you too. Get your act together Kol, what's going on with you? You've been neglecting your responsibilities and you're really starting to spark curiosity in Ava," Elena expressed her concern to Kol. He rolled his eyes, thinking Elena was over reacting. He could still hear Ava rummaging through the fridge upstairs so he decided to continue this conversation with Elena until she came back.
"So what if she smells it. Damon drinks too, I don't see you complaining. I've babysat for you while you guys want your own nights to yourself too. She's your daughter, Elena, not mine. If I want to drink and sleep all day, what's the matter with that? I'm not bothering anyone by being alone. I babysit her when you need me to, then when I'm not I do what I want for fun," Kol said. Elena's brows crossed in confusion before she rolled her eyes. Sure, pick 1000 years later to act like a teenager, she thought.
She looked at him with pleading eyes before he looked away from her, he couldn't stand to look at her if this was how she was going to look. She had a mixture of worry, disappointment, and confusion on her face.
"Clean up, Kol. Clean your room, clean yourself and clean up your attitude. You live under my roof, you do as I say. You want to go out and party all night, fine, be my guest. You're not my teenage son, you don't have a curfew. But if you think you're going to stumble through my doorway, drunk as hell, and then sleep all day while I have a toddler who lives here as well, you're sadly mistaken," She said. He looked at her shocked for a moment but heard Ava's footsteps nearing his door.
Ava came in with a bright smile on her face and ran over to Kol, hugging his legs. She handed him a water bottle that her mother told her to grab for him, and he accepted it with a small smile on his face. She was about to speak to Kol before Elena picked her up and spoke first.
"Daddy's waiting for us upstairs, baby. We're going to go get a cake for Aunt Katherine's birthday party. Maybe if Kol cleans his room before we get back, he can have some of the cake too," Elena said. Though her voice was joking towards her daughter, Kol could hear her pleading for him to comply. He rolled his eyes and sipped on his water bottle, already beginning to pick up clothes from his floor to throw into the laundry hamper.
Ava beamed at her mom and hugged her before looking at Kol, "You should listen to Momma, she's always right. Mommy even says you can have some cake too!" Ava giggled. Kol had a smile on his face as Ava spoke; he'd missed her warm voice.
"And between you and me, if you clean my room too, I'll let you have some of my cake," Ava whispered to Kol. He let out a heartfelt laugh before winking at Ava, obvious to Elena as she was laughing as well. She set Ava down and urged her to go upstairs to find her father, trying to have one last conversation with Kol.
"Hey, look. Whatever it is that's got you so wound up, or upset that you've been drinking your life away these past couple of weeks, you can talk to me if you want. I love you, Kol. I'm here for you, whenever you need me. Don't ever think that I'm not, just because I have Damon back and I'm trying to get my family back together again, doesn't mean I don't have time for you," she said softly. Kol nodded at her and hugged her, unable to say those three words back to her. She patted his back sympathetically and pulled away gently, giving him a reassuring nod before heading upstairs to join her husband and daughter.
She'd found Damon and Ava in the foyer of the house. Damon was sitting on the step by the front door and Ava was standing right in front of him as he was trying to zip up her jacket. They were laughing together as Damon couldn't get the zipper properly and Elena just leaned on the doorway, watching her silly little family. When Damon got the zipper up, he turned his head in his wife's direction and smiled genuinely at her.
They'd grown incredibly close ever since he'd proven his love to her, the first time they had been intimate when he came back. She didn't think it was possible to be so close to someone, mentally, physically and emotionally, but she was. This was all thanks to Damon.
Ava squealed as Damon opened the door for them and let Ava out, he chuckled as he saw her small form running out of her house. She was perfect. Her long and silky straight black hair was perfectly brushed back into a pony tail, and her blue eyes accentuated her flawless pale complexion. She had on a pair of dark blue skinny jeans, a black sweater, accompanied by her black leather jacket given to her by Damon and grey boots that came up a little past her ankles. Ava's scarf, mittens, and ear muffs were all grey with black butterfly designs. She looked stunning and captivating; and she was only 3 years old.
"C'mon, wouldn't want those yummy cakes to get sold out now, do we?" Damon chuckled at his daughter. She shook her head ferociously before running straight to Elena's car, opening the back door to where her car seat was. Damon groaned as he saw his daughter run towards his wife's car instead of his classic one and Elena laughed a heartfelt laugh from behind them.
"Don't pout, baby. You had to know that she'd pick my car over yours; she's more of a modern girl not a classic one. Besides, she has her mother's amazing taste," Elena bragged. Damon shot her a knowing look and Elena's eyes widened as much as her mouth before she let out a yelp and ran towards the car as well, leaving a trail of laughter behind her. Damon laughed and shook his head before running towards to car after his girls.
Damon hopped into the driver's seat as Elena climbed into the passenger seat. They alternated when they drove Elena's car; Elena would drive when Damon was tired and didn't want to drive anymore or Damon would drive when Elena wasn't in the mood and/or was busy. It wasn't established like this, it was just how it went between them.
They had begun to start driving towards the bakery and they'd already been engaging in conversation, as always. It was always random topics, never anything serious.
"What kind of cake should we get for Aunt Katherine?" Damon asked Ava.
Ava smiled brightly at her father and thought long and hard before she came up with her answer. "I don't know, I think Aunt Katherine might like chocolate cake but I think she might like red velvet better," Ava said.
"Why would you think she would like red velvet better?" Elena asked.
Ava smiled at her mom, "Because red velvet cake is red like blood and Aunt Katherine is a vampire," Ava said. Ava held up her hands and curled her fingers in a cute attempt of trying to be scary with a little hiss and a failed attempt of showing off her non-existent fangs. Elena chuckled and shook her head while Damon was laughing hysterically.
Ava pouted, "I was trying to be scary, not funny," she whined.
Elena laughed quietly before turning around to face her daughter, "I can't help it, you're just too cute," Elena smiled.
They arrived at Betty's Bakery, just a down the street for the Mystic Grill, and parked their car at the side of the road. Upon their arrival into the store, Ava was running through the whole bakery with the biggest smile on her face as Damon and Elena walked a little more behind, chuckling at their daughter's happiness. It was great being a 3 year old, there were no cares in the world because Mommy and Daddy have it all figured out for you. Damon intertwined his fingers with Elena's as he watched his daughter run through the bakery through his sunglasses.
Elena brought his hand up to kiss it before snuggling closer to him, extremely ecstatic to have him back. They started to look through the store before they saw Ava kneel down to glue her face to the glass counter, the base of her palm spread out on the glass as she looked at the beautiful cakes. Damon and Elena reached Ava and she looked up at them with pure delight, her hand never leaving the glass.
"Daddy, it's perfect! It's not too big and it's not too small!" Ava pleaded with Damon. He laughed and bent down to her level, patting the top of her head.
"Hmm, are you sure? There are a lot of other cakes out here that you might like more if you go look around," Damon persuaded. He didn't think Ava could find the perfect cake in just under a minute or two. Her small head rose as she looked around the bakery. It wasn't very big, considering they lived in the small town of Mystic Falls, and her eyes were like sharp vision; pointing things out very clearly.
"I'm sure, Daddy. I already saw all the other cakes and they're not as special as this one," she assured her father. Ava leaned back to gaze at the cake when Damon flagged down the owner and asked for the particular cake. Elena was off looking at other sweets as well when she found two tiny twin-sized containers with red swirly frosted cupcakes and absolutely loved them. She picked them up and held them in each arm before seeing Damon and Ava walking over to her.
"Mommy look, Daddy and I found a cake! Isn't it pretty?" Ava squealed to Elena. Damon stood at the side of his daughter and rolled his eyes at Ava's enthusiasm. They walked over to the counter so they could pay for their desserts and be on their way. After paying for them, Damon placed them in the backseat of the car while Elena was buckling Ava into her car seat.
Damon hopped into the driver's seat of the car as Elena did to the passenger seat and they pulled out of the parking lot, driving off onto the road ahead of them. It had begun to rain as they were driving home, small pellets of rain drops spitting and dropping onto the surface of the windshield. There was a soft melody of music playing from the car, much to Damon's distaste, and Elena turned around to look at her daughter. She was sound asleep leaning her head against the side of her car seat. Elena snapped a picture of her precious daughter and turned back to face the front.
Elena looked over at a peacefully driving Damon and intertwined her hand in his. "Where are we going?" Elena said, not noticing her route they were taking. He looked out his rear view mirror and didn't see a car so he turned his head so his eyes could face hers.
"We're going out for a late lunch. Ava hasn't eaten since breakfast, and neither have you. We're always either eating at home or eating at the café and realistically, we need to get some other type of meals into our systems. Also, it's nice to have a day with you guys without Kol," Damon said. He was grinning but you could see that he really meant it. Though, who would blame him?
"Yeah, you're right; just don't go anywhere fancy because we aren't dressed for that. Though, you do have a point with Kol," Elena sighed. Damon noticed his wife's discomfort and he stroked her cheek with the hand he wasn't driving with. She leaned into his comforting gesture and covered his hand with hers, pulling them from her face slowly and kissing his fingertips with her soft lips.
"What's going on with him?" He asked.
Elena rolled her eyes and sat up straight in her chair, "I don't have a clue. For the past couple of weeks he's been neglecting his responsibilities at home, he's been coming home intoxicated, and he hasn't babysat Ava any of the times that I've asked him to. I don't ask for much from him. I only ask that he keep the basement clean and not bring anyone over.
"Ava's our daughter so yes, I take care of her and so do you. But when I'm working, I can't watch her. And when you're doing council business or you're out doing whatever it is you're doing, you can't watch her. He told me he would babysit when I asked, which by the way is not frequently, yet he doesn't," Elena fumed.
Damon calmly stroked the pad of his thumb over the back of her hand. "Elena, shouldn't he go out and look for his own place?" Damon said but hurriedly put his hand up in defense as Elena sent him a glare.
"Why in the hell would he do that?"
"Because he's over 1000 years old yet he lives in our basement like some teenager who has no future. He should be out exploring the world or something, or if anything buying his own house like the rest of his siblings did," Damon bargained. Elena tore her gaze from Damon to stare out into the rainy foggy mist that was outside of her window.
"I won't kick him out just because he's been acting up for a couple of weeks. Despite what you think, he's really good with Ava and it helps having him around sometimes," she said. They didn't touch on the subject anymore, they just drove in silence. Damon thought more about Kol's moving out because it was something he seriously thought was appropriate but he didn't voice his thoughts because his wife would most definitely have a problem with that.
They drove up to the Grill and parked the car at the side of the street since there were no parking lot spaces available, not that there were many parking spaces in the first place. As Damon put the car in park, he turned around to see his beautiful daughter still peacefully sleeping in the back seat. He smiled at her before looking over at his wife who was turned around in her seat on her knees, her chin was resting on the head rest and Elena was staring at their daughter's beautiful face.
"I can feel you staring at me," Ava said softly. Her eyes were still shut and she was still in the same position as she always was.
"I'm gazing," Elena said.
"It's creepy," Ava chuckled with her little baby laugh and opened her wild blue eyes at Damon. She grinned at was about to jump and throw her arms around Damon's neck but the straps of her care seat held her back with force. She huffed at the contraption she was in and Damon laughed a heartfelt laugh. Elena got out of the car and walked over to her daughter's side door, opening it and taking Ava out of her car seat and onto Elena's hip.
They walked into the Grill like a family and saw a few people that they knew already sitting down at tables. Jeremy and Bonnie were playing pool in the corner, Klaus and Kol were at the bar drinking, and Rebekah and Katherine were playing darts. Elena raised her brow at Katherine, who was playing darts with her mortal enemy. Katherine just smirked at her and threw a dart right in the middle of the dart board, raising her arms thereafter and laughing at Rebekah and her defeat.
Elena put Ava down gently and she ran to her Aunt Bonnie and Uncle Jeremy. They beamed as they saw her and Bonnie picked her up, kissing her cheeks like crazy and giving her a squeezing hug. Jeremy was wrapping his arms around the two and kissing Ava on the top of her head.
"Uncle Jeremy I missed you so much," Ava expressed to her uncle. Jeremy laughed and took her into his big and strong arms.
"Oh yeah? How much?" Jeremy asked with much enthusiasm on his face.
Ava threw her arms out wide and she grinned her cute grin with all her perfectly straight teeth, "This much." Jeremy chuckled at his niece's theatrics and kissed her temple before setting her down at the side of the pool table, teaching her how to play pool because after all he is a pool shark.
While Jeremy and Bonnie were watching Ava, Elena and Damon were talking to Stefan and Katherine.
"So, how's my angel?" Katherine said. She was sipping her coffee mug she'd brought from home, though it didn't contain any traces of coffee, just blood. Elena tilted her head to get a view of her precious angel and her brother at the far right side of the Grill playing pool and having a great time.
"She's good, getting bigger and bigger every day," Elena said in awe. Damon nodded in agreement.
Damon flagged down Matt who was over to them in a matter of seconds, "Can I get you guys anything?" said Matt.
Elena looked across the room and locked eyes with her daughter, "What do you want to eat, honey?" Elena asked.
"Chicken strips and fries," Ava squealed. Elena laughed and turned her way to Matt, ordering chicken strips, fries and an apple juice for her daughter and a Caesar salad with water for herself. Though, a disapproving look from Damon caused her to change her drink choice from water to iced tea.
"So, Kat, how is your birthday going?" Elena smirked.
Katherine glared at her doppelganger with fury, "I said not to bring it up!" she spluttered. Stefan and Elena were laughing at Katherine's cold attitude towards her birthday. Elena thought birthdays were special and should be celebrated no matter how old you were, that's what she was always taught and that is what she is currently teaching Ava.
Matt came around with the food soon after and Ava reluctantly left Bonnie and Jeremy to eat with her parents, Stefan and Katherine. She sat at the booth and started taking little bites of her chicken and a couple of fries every so often because she was more interested in playing Temple Run 2.
"Ava, eat your food," Elena said.
Ava rolled her eyes and stuck a fry in her mouth before turning her attention back to the iPad in her lap that Damon let her take from the car.
"This is your fault," Elena glared at Damon.
"My fault, how is it my fault?"
"Because she's more focused on playing with electronics than eating her food."
"She was bored and I can't pull it away from her now, she's getting high scores and she needs to concentrate," Damon said. Ava hadn't looked up at her mother but she could tell Elena was a couple of seconds from cursing at her father so she paused the game and slid the iPad onto the booth seat beside her, resuming her eating.
"Katherine and I are going shopping after we're done at the Grill, I want to spoil her with nice clothes, jewelry and a spa treatment," Stefan smirked. Unbeknownst to Katherine that the reason he was taking her out for all of these things was to keep her out of the house while Elena, Ava and Damon set up for her birthday party.
It wasn't going to be anything big because Katherine hated big parties and disliked a lot of people in Mystic Falls; it was just going to be Elena, Damon, Ava, Stefan, Isobel, Elijah and obviously Katherine.
Katherine smiled at Stefan, "yes pamper me, I love to be pampered," she purred.
As they all started talking about irrelevant things, Bonnie and Jeremy had begun to join them. Jeremy sat with Ava and helped her finish her food, earning a glare from Elena, and helped her with achieving a higher score on Temple Run. Bonnie, however, had different plans. She turned her attention towards Damon and he snapped his attention to her when he felt her piercing eyes on his head.
"Damon, could you help me get some things from my car? Jeremy's too preoccupied with Ava to help and I'm really not in the mood to ask Klaus," Bonnie pleaded. Though, it was obvious to Damon that she had an ulterior motive behind it. He looked around the table and Elena just shrugged and nodded her head at him, not finding this suspicious at all.
"I could help you," said Stefan. Stefan could see Damon was uneasy and it was probably because Bonnie wasn't Damon's biggest fan so she was probably just trying to pull him aside to give him the 'mess with my best friend, I'll kill you' speech.
Bonnie was about to interrupt but Damon slid out of her seat before she could say anything, "Stefan's on a bunny diet, I'm sure I'm much more effective," Damon smirked.
Ava gasped at Damon before turning her attention to Stefan, "Uncle Stefan, you eat bunnies? How could you, they're so cute and cuddly," Ava whispered in horror. Elena rolled her eyes and gave a glare to Damon, good going, Damon, she thought.
"No, I don't eat bunnies, sweetie. Daddy's just trying to be funny," Stefan chuckled but you could hear his frustrated tone.
Damon laughed and exited The Grill, walking towards the parked car two streets down from the Grill. "Jesus Bonnie, why do you have to park so far?" Damon groaned. Bonnie then turned around abruptly when they reached her car and Damon stepped back with his hands in the air.
"Look, I'm sorry I left Elena but I don't have to explain myself to you and I would appreciate it if you wouldn't fry my brain because in all honesty I could-" he rambled but was cut off with her putting her hand up for him to stop.
"That's not why I called you out here. I wanted to talk to you about a recurring dream I've been having," Bonnie said worriedly.
Damon rolled his eyes, "Great, psychoanalysis 101. Listen, Bonnie, I'm not Sigmund Freud. I can't help you with the traumas of your unconscious mind."
"Shut up, Damon. They're visions, and they're of you and Elena," Bonnie said with an uneasy tone. This caught Damon's attention and his eyes narrowed into slits, urging her to continue. Bonnie gulped and closed her eyes as she forced herself to think of the nightmares she has been having of her best friend.
"There's a man, he's got Elena and I can't see where. I don't understand him; he's talking about a tree. He's got back up and they're surrounding her. I have a really bad vibe about this, Damon," Bonnie says in a low and scared tone. She grabs his arm and her eyes shoot wide open like saucers. "Damon, it's only the beginning. It's only going to get worse from here," she cries.
Damon grabs Bonnie's face in an attempt to take her back from where she is and calm her down. "Bonnie, damnit, look at me!" he said.
Bonnie's eyes blink a few times and she cocks her head to the side, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get out of control, I just... I'm really scared, Damon."
"It's okay, everything is going to be fine. I won't let anything happen to my wife. But I have this note that I need you to look at," Damon said. He pulls out the note that was thrown through the window the other day and hands it to her.
Bonnie takes the note in her hands and immediately snaps her head up to Damon's, "Where did you get this?" she asked.
"Someone threw it at my window two weeks ago," he said, his head looking around to see if anyone was watching them.
"It's the same negative energy I was feeling when I was having those nightmares. Whoever sent this is about to wreak havoc in your world; it's so overwhelming," she said.
Damon rolls his eyes, he doesn't believe that anyone is going to ruin his family. They'd have to kill him first. "What can you do about this?" He asked.
"I can try to do a spell to find out whose this is, but it will be tricky. I've been practicing a new kind of magic called expression and even with the powers of the witches at my disposal, it won't be easy. But I can do it for you; it'll just take some time, I should have your results in a couple of days," she says.
He was about to walk off when Bonnie called for him, he turned around and his eyes met hers.
"This is just the beginning, Damon," she said.
"But I have this note you need to look at…someone threw it at my window."
"Same negative energy...new kind of magic called expression…results in a couple of days…this is just the beginning."
Ava shivered when she heard the last of her aunt and her dad talking about this. She was worried that someone was going to try and hurt her family and she didn't know how to stop them. She overheard her mom and dad talking once about how she was one of the strongest ones in the family and she was so young.
"Hey kiddo, what are you doing outside?" Kol asked, his head tilting in confusion. Ava nervously looked down and ran into Kol's arms, taking him by surprise. "It's not that I don't think you're adorable, because you are, but why are you so affectionate right now?" he chuckled.
She didn't answer him; she just tightened her arms around his neck and shivered a little more. He pulled back slightly and looked at her with worrisome and concerned eyes, "What's wrong?" he asked.
"Kol, can we go get some ice cream. I don't want to talk about it here, someone might hear us," she said as she looked around cautiously.
Kol nodded, "but we have to tell your mom first," he says.
They walked into the Grill and found Elena and Katherine playing darts and having a good time and Kol was thankful because this way they would be less likely to notice Ava's uneasiness.
"Hey, Elena? Can I take Ava across the street for some ice cream? I've missed the little munchkin," he smirks. Elena doesn't even turn around to fully acknowledge them; she trusts Kol a lot and knows nothing would ever happen to Ava when he was around.
When they were successfully at the Dairy Queen down the road, Kol orders Ava a one scoop cookie dough cone with sprinkles and hands it to her. "Okay, you have your ice cream, now spill," he said as they sat at one of the outdoor tables.
Ava takes the first lick of her ice cream before she starts, "I overheard Daddy talking to Aunt Bonnie about something."
Before long, Ava recites the whole conversation Bonnie and Damon had.
Kol's eyebrows furrow together and Ava looks down at the ground. "I wasn't supposed to be listening. I was just trying to see if Daddy wanted to go get ice cream with me but then I was listening in and I forgot how long I was doing it until you came outside. Please don't tell Daddy I told you, he'll be so mad at me," her eyes sparkled with tears.
Kol's heart broke at the sight of an upset Ava so he reached across the table and stroked her cheek. "I won't tell him, but he won't be mad at you. You're just a kid; he can't get that upset with you. You're a little mini Damon, he probably did the same things when he was little too," he smiled.
"Thanks Kol, I'm sorry for being bad. I promise to try my hardest to be a good girl next time," she smiled.
They get back to the Grill just as Elena and Damon were grabbing their coats, "I'm here to return your daughter," Kol smirked. Ava rolls her eyes and runs straight into Damon's arms with a big smile on her face, leaning her head into the crook of his neck.
"Are you tired, Honey?" Elena asks Ava.
"Yes," Ava and Damon say simultaneously. Elena laughed and bumped Damon's shoulder with her own as he chuckles.
"Well that's too bad for you because while our precious princess is sleeping, you'll be helping me decorate," Elena says devilishly to Damon. He wiggles his eyebrows at her and pecks her lips softly before taking a half-asleep Ava to the car to strap her in. Leaving Elena with Kol because he knows she wants to talk to him about what's been going on the past few weeks.
Kol looks back at Damon then to Elena, "There's something I have to talk to you about," they say at the same time. Elena chuckles and shakes her head.
"I go first," Kol interrupts. Elena rolls her eyes at Kol and nods for him to continue.
"Ava told me that she overheard Damon and your witch friend talking about Damon getting a note a few weeks ago, bonnie says she's getting a really bad vibe about it and she's worried about your safety. I don't care if Damon wants to keep this from you because you guys can sort out your love life on your own but I refuse to stand by in the dark while a witch is contemplating Ava's safety," he looks at Elena sternly.
Elena's eyes narrow into slits, "She's my daughter, Kol. I can keep her safe; it's my job to do that not yours. Thank you for telling me though. Don't forget that I'll be at the boarding house for Katherine's birthday party so I'm not sure when I'll be home," Elena spluttered before joining Damon outside in the car.
She couldn't even look at him, keeping this secret from her for two weeks and telling only Bonnie? If this was about her family's safety then she had a right to know. It was ridiculous that Ava and Kol had to find out before she did. They were husband and wife, they had taken vows to tell each other the truth and never keep things from each other.
When they were about half way home Damon had looked over at his wife who seemed to be agitated at him, when he put his hand on her leg to try to alleviate the stress, she turned her head out the window and never looked at him again. No one spoke the whole car ride home.
When they drove into the boarding house driveway, Elena hopped out of the car and unbuckled Ava as quickly and gently as she could because Ava was sleeping. She walked in through the door and put her purse down on the chair in the entrance way, making her way up the stairs and laying her sleeping daughter on Damon's spacious bed.
She sat with her daughter for a couple of minutes while Damon brought in all the party decorations and things. She was stroking Ava's hair softly before she heard footsteps coming upstairs and saw Damon leaning against the doorway with a small smile on his face.
"I've always wanted a daughter," he said. "My mom always told me that if I were going to give her grandchildren, I would have to give her a granddaughter because she didn't have any daughters," he smiled. His lips lifting upwards in the corners in a way that made Elena's heart want to burst with love.
"Well, I'm sure your mother would be very happy with you," Elena said with a low voice. Even though I'm not very happy with you, she thought.
He nodded thankfully, "Let's set up while she's sleeping so we have the chance to get everything done," he pleaded.
She rose from the bed and walked over to the door, slightly brushing her shoulder on his on her way out. When she made it down the stairs, she grabbed the dark red streamers and tape from the living room and started hanging them on the ceiling. When she was done, she smelt the delicious aroma of food coming from the kitchen and felt compelled to check it out.
That's when she saw Damon hovering over the stove humming to Hey Jude by The Beatles. She smiled as she saw his hard work in trying to make a good dinner for Katherine's birthday. She coughed awkwardly to gain his attention and he stopped humming to look over his shoulder to see her staring at him.
He smirked at her and grabbed two glasses, poured red wine into both and handed one to her. "My lady," he said while wiggling his eyebrows at her. She took it and sighed.
"Why didn't you tell me, Damon?"
His eyebrows furrowed and he tilted his head in confusion, "About what?" he asked.
"About the note you got two weeks ago, the possibility that we might be in danger?" she asked.
That right there made Damon freeze like a deer caught on headlights, "Bonnie told you?"
"No, Kol told me. You'll never guess how Kol found out," she said while knocking back the rest of her wine and setting the glass down.
"He overheard Bonnie and I talking at her car? Doesn't that kid know how to stick his nose into his own business," Damon said with disgust.
Elena glared at her husband before pouring herself another glass of wine, "Actually, it was brought to his attention; by your daughter. She overheard you talking to Bonnie about it and she was really scared so she went to go talk to Kol about it. Damon, what were you thinking," she said. Her head shaking as she massaged her temples with her left hand.
"How was I supposed to know that she was around, there was a reason we left the Grill. We didn't want anyone to overhear us. I'm sorry I didn't think my daughter would eavesdrop on my conversation. Why weren't you watching her in the first place, if she was inside of the Grill with you then she wouldn't have heard me," he said. He turned his back to her and went back to cooking.
"So now this is my fault? I don't care that she found out, I'm upset that it took me two weeks to find out from someone who wasn't you," Elena scolded.
"I didn't know how to tell you, I didn't think it was a big deal until Bonnie and I talked today."
"You're ridiculous. You took vows not to keep things from me and that's exactly what you did, Damon," she said angrily.
"What do you want me to say, Elena? That I'm sorry I kept it from you? Well, I won't because I'm not. If I had told you then you would have been worried and you would have been irrational for nothing. Nothing has happened these past couple of weeks and Bonnie is trying to work on a spell to find whoever left the note and we'll find them. You're overreacting," Damon said, trying to rationalize.
"You know what, Damon? Screw this. I'm not looking for an apology I'm just asking you not to keep things from me, but obviously that doesn't work with you. Talk to me when you're ready to accept that," Elena huffed and set her glass down. She walked over to the living room to finish setting up and decorating.
Not long after, Elena had the whole living room finished. There were dark red streamers on the ceiling twirling from the chandelier to the four corners of the room. The medium sized red velvet cake they bought from the bakery was covered in a black and white fondant. The words 'Happy Birthday Katherine' in a professional handwriting, courtesy of Elena, was done with a red icing. There were two open containers of chocolate cupcakes with red icing swirls and Oreo pieces sprinkled on the top. There were also a small stack of presents on the coffee table for Katherine.
There were dark red and black balloons in various places that were bought for 38th birthday parties but Elena put a 5 in front of them. Katherine was turned in 1492 when she was 18 so Elena brought it upon herself to do the math to figure out Katherine's actual age of 538.
Elena smiled as she saw her masterpiece and went upstairs with her bag to change and get ready.
After shaving and showering, Elena dried herself off with one of the towels on Damon's counter and wrapped a robe around her. She walked over to her bag and pulled out her cosmetics, applying light make up to her olive toned face. She blow dried her hair until her hair was completely dry and curled her hair it until her whole head was completed with waves.
She walked on over to her bag on the bed where her daughter was still sleeping and pulled out her clothes for tonight. She was wearing her favorite straight flow burgundy red one shoulder chiffon dress that reached just about three fingers above the knee. The dress was completed with a soft and thin brown belt that looped around the midsection.
Just as Elena was putting the finishing touches on her clothes, Ava was waking up.
"Mommy?"
Elena looked at the face of her beautiful daughter and couldn't help but walk over to her and place small kisses to her soft forehead. "Hi sweetheart, you should get ready. Aunt Katherine should be here soon and we want to be ready to surprise her," Elena said softly.
Ava's eyes twinkled at the name of her favorite aunt and she vamp sped to Damon's open ensuite bathroom to use the facilities while Elena took out her clothes and laid it on the bed for her. She'd brought Ava's white on black long sleeve lace dress with a black collar and her favorite pair of black stockings. Elena combed out Ava's thick and long silky straight hair and pulled it into a pony tail before softly brushing out the ends.
Once they were done getting ready, Ava and Elena walked downstairs to see Damon setting the table. Damon hadn't looked up at his wife or daughter yet but he knew they were there.
"Dinner should be ready in a couple of minutes, I'm just keeping it on the stove and in the oven to keep it warm for when everyone gets here," he said. He turned around and saw that his girls were all ready for tonight. He couldn't take his eyes off of Elena, she was stunning. Her olive toned legs a mile long in that red dress she was wearing.
"What's for dinner?" Ava smiled.
Damon smirked down at his daughter and pulled her into his arms before picking her up. "We're having Caesar salad, fettuccine alfredo with parmesan crusted chicken and garlic bread. How does that sound?" He asked.
"Yummy Daddy, but Mommy makes the best fettuccine alfredo," Ava smirked.
Damon rolled his eyes and kissed his daughter's forehead before setting her on the ground, "That's because you haven't tried mine. It's to die for," he said, wriggling his eyebrows. He looked over at Elena and looked her up and down appreciatively, "You look stunning, baby," he smiled genuinely.
Elena smiled back and kissed him softly before speaking. "You should go upstairs and get ready, they should be here soon."
Damon came down the stairs wearing a white long sleeve button down dress shirt that was perfectly tucked into his black Armani dress pants. His black hair was dry and slightly ruffled and his face was growing a small amount of stubble, bringing out his incredibly blue eyes.
"Daddy, I can hear them coming. Aunt Katherine and Uncle Stefan are in the car down the street, go put food on the table and turn all the lights off so we can surprise her!" Ava squealed. Damon vamp sped to the kitchen to put all the food on the dining room table while Elena and Katherine hid in the living room with all the lights off. Just as Damon blurred to his family, Katherine and Stefan were unlocking the door.
"Stefan, I'm a little disappointed. I really wanted to go to that restaurant just outside of town," Katherine huffed as she walked in, chucking her purse to the chair by the door.
Just as they closed the door, Damon turned on all the lights.
"Surprise!" They all yelled, catching Katherine off guard.
Katherine looked around to see her favorite family in the beautifully decorated living room; it was absolutely breath taking. She vamp sped over to Elena, knowing she did all the work, and tackled her with a big hug. Elena laughed and hugged her just as tight, if not tighter. Katherine pulled back a little and looked around the room in awe and gulped.
"You did this all for me?" Katherine's lip quivered. All Elena did was nod and Katherine smiled the most genuine smile Elena's received since the day Elena gave birth to Ava with Katherine in the room.
"Happy Birthday Aunt Katherine," Ava squealed.
Katherine looked over at her niece and picked her up, placing small butterfly kisses all around her face and ending with a slow Eskimo kiss. "Thanks sweetheart," Katherine said.
They moved the party towards the dining room where all the food was being served and Katherine smirked at Stefan, "I take it back, I would choose this over the restaurant outside of town any day."
They ate and talked about the day, leaving out Damon's encounter with Bonnie, and surprising enough everyone had a really good time. They were all giving their compliments to Damon about his marvelous cooking skills, with the exception of Ava who still thought her mother's cooking was better. Just as Damon and Stefan were putting the dishes away, Katherine, Ava, and Elena went over to the living room.
"Ava, don't eat the cupcakes until everyone's here," Elena scolded.
Just as Ava went to put it back, Katherine put her hand up, "Birthday girl makes the rules, and I say she can have the cupcake. Go on honey," Katherine allowed. Elena glared at Katherine and rolled her eyes as Damon and Stefan made their way to the living room, plopping down on the couch.
Elena lit the 5 3 and 8 candles on the cake and all together they sang happy birthday to Katherine and she blew out her candles, cutting the cake and handing everyone their pieces. As everyone was eating, Katherine thought it necessary to say a few words.
"I want to thank you guys for coming, seriously. I haven't celebrated a birthday with family in centuries and I'm so happy to be spending it with you all," Katherine smiled genuinely.
"Aw, I've never heard you sound so sincere," Damon said sarcastically. Earning glares from everyone.
"I take that back, I'm glad I have everyone here on my birthday, but you," Katherine grinned.
After everyone was done eating their cake, Ava got a little too anxious to wait for gift openings. "You've got presents to open," Ava said.
Katherine pulled the first wrapped item into her arms and she smirked, a present from Bonnie and Jeremy. Katherine had never actually been close with Bonnie but over the years, she was starting to warm up to the idea of Jeremy being family. After all, he was Elena's brother. Bonnie was a packaged deal. She opened it and it was a Pandora bracelet with a separate charm in the box, a vampire fang. She laughed and shook her head.
"From witchy and Jeremy, it's a Pandora bracelet and a vampire fang charm. That punk," Katherine said.
She opened the next present, it was from Elijah and Isobel. Before she could open it, Elena spoke.
"They were supposed to be here tonight but mom was busy with research and Elijah was helping her," Elena apologized. Katherine shrugged and continued opening the present.
It was an old leather bound book, she opened it and her eyes went as wide as saucers at its content.
"It's an old book from Elijah and Isobel, it contains all the details about my family," Katherine whispered. She ran her fingers over the papers before smiling and putting it beside her. She grabbed the second last present and pulled it into her lap. She tore gently at the messily wrapped gift, knowing it was from Ava, and pulled it out.
It was a framed picture of Katherine and Ava at the park; they were smiling brightly, showing their bright white teeth under the summer sunlight from two years ago when Katherine went to visit Elena and Ava in New York.
Katherine looked beside her at Ava and kissed her forehead, "I love it, thank you sweetie," Katherine said.
She pulled the last present out, from Elena and Damon, and lifted the lid of the box; in it was a brown Versace dress with a pair of Versace sunglasses and black 6 inch Louis Vuitton heels. She looked up at Elena, her mouth hanging a little open.
"This dress doesn't come out until next year, and neither do these heels. These sunglasses are only supposed to be here available for pre-ordering in six months, how did you get them?" Katherine gaped.
"I know people who know people, it wasn't a big deal," Elena smiled. Katherine wasn't going to ask about the price because she knew Elena and Damon had plenty for it but Katherine was baffled that she was able to get this. She was planning on compelling someone to release it in a few months but now she didn't have to.
"Thank you so much," Katherine smiled at them. They smiled back but thought nothing of it, Katherine was practically their sister. Elena would do anything for her and Damon would too.
They began talking about boring and irrelevant things when Ava's light breathing became noticeable to Damon.
"We should probably head home, Ava's already sleeping," Damon said to Elena. Elena looked over and saw her precious daughter leaning her head on the arm rest of the couch, completely drained from the day and from the boring conversation the adults were having.
They got up to put on their coats and shoes while Katherine gently dressed Ava in her black leather jacket, ear muffs that she'd came in, and her boots before handing her to Elena's arms. "Thank you guys for coming, it was a great birthday party," Katherine thanked while leaning her head onto Stefan's shoulder.
"Anytime, Kat. We'll see you guys soon," Elena smiled as they descended down the driveway and into Elena's car. Elena buckled Ava into the car seat, gently as she didn't want to wake her. She got into the passenger seat and fastened her seat belt as Damon started driving away. They hadn't made up yet but they weren't exactly upset with each other anymore.
Elena wanted Damon to apologize from keeping things from her but she understood that Damon was trying to protect her and his family, she couldn't argue much with that.
They drove into the driveway and Damon parked Elena's car into the garage. As Elena got out of the car, Damon took Ava out of the car and into his arms. He kissed Ava's forehead as Ava tightened her arms around his neck. Elena closed the garage and unlocked the door that lead to the side of the house, opening it for Damon to get in.
"Can you tuck her in? I'm going to check if Kol is home yet," Elena asked softly.
"Sure," Damon smiled and walked with his sleeping daughter in his arms up the stairs.
Elena walked downstairs to the basement but there was no sign of Kol anywhere. She opened the light to his room and smiled brightly when she saw that it was spotless from top to bottom with clean sheets and dusted furniture. Though, Kol wasn't in the room and it looked like he hadn't been there for a while. As she was leaving the room, she saw that there was a big black garbage bag by the stairwell.
He cleaned the basement like I asked him, the least I can do is take out the trash, she thought. She grabbed the bag and pulled it up into her arms before carefully watching her step and going up the stairs. Once at the top step, she walked over to the front door and unlocked it, stepping outside and putting the garbage bag in the trash at the end of the driveway.
She shivered slightly from the cold hair and tightened the jacket she was wearing around her torso. Elena pulled out her phone and searched through her contacts list to find Kol's number. Though, when she called it went to voice mail twice. She sighed was about to put her phone in her pocket when it tapped loudly against the ring on her finger; her wedding ring.
She looked down at it and frowned, thinking of her earlier conversation with Damon. He'd been acting so selfish at first, holding things from her. She pulled the ring off of her finger to examine it and that's when she saw the engraving in it. I will always choose you.
Her heart exploded with love at that moment and she realized that they were in this together. No matter what he did, he would always choose her and do right by her, and of course her daughter. She wasn't going to let a small fight like this let her go to bed upset at him tonight. She was going to march into the house and tell her husband how much she loved him and how much he meant to her.
But as she was going to walk up the driveway, she didn't hear what she should have. All she felt was a hand on her mouth and a strong being run with her out of the vicinity of her home at the speed of light.
Damon smiled down at his daughter; she was in her pink strawberry shortcake pajamas snuggling up to her favorite bear. He kissed her forehead and whispered a goodnight before closing the door to Ava's room and walking down the stairs to the spacious living room. A living room where he didn't see his wife. His eyes searched around the lower level in an attempt to find her but when he couldn't see her, or hear a heartbeat other than his daughter's, he got worried. He vamp sped to the basement but couldn't find her.
Damon raced outside to frantically check around for his wife, "Elena?" He called out. Though, there was no answer. All that he saw was a twinkle of light being reflected on the ground. He race to the bottom of the driveway and saw Elena's phone and wedding ring on the cold hard ground.
He bent down and gently picked up the wedding ring. "Elena," Damon whispered. His fears from when he was talking to Bonnie earlier in the day and her words were ringing in his ear.
This is just the beginning, Damon.
So, it's been a while guys! I haven't uploaded in a long time, sigh. But, if it makes you feel any better, I updated my planning list for this story so I'm more interested in it and feel more motivated to update more often.
Let me also start off by saying thank you for all of those reviews last chapter, wow, it blew my mind. If you guys would like me to start posting public replies to your reviews in my author's note, please let me know because I'd be more than happy to take the time out of my day to write back to you. If you just want me to reply back then I'll pm you and let you know how wonderful you are and give you my gratitude for reviewing. Though, I'm sure this will benefit the anon readers.
Anyway, I thought that because you guys were so patient with me through this hiatus if you will, I want to give you a little spoilers for upcoming chapters. There is going to be more Damon and Elena fluffiness though there will be many serious moments because this is where the plot of the story starts to develop. I've introduced the main characters enough so I'd like to just get into the plot now.
There is going to be some heart wrenching scenes up coming in a couple of chapters, may even be the next chapter depending on how you look at it. Also, there are going to be few to several new characters coming up, not all for the good.
Family history is coming up that will just blow your minds!
As always though, I'd love for you to drop me a review and tell me how you thought this chapter was. Are you excited for the upcoming plot? Who do you think I'm going to introduce as a new character? Better yet, whose family history is going to blow your minds? Let me know, I can't wait to hear your thoughts. The most creative answers are going to get a personal shout outs in my next chapter's AN. So remember, read and review! And thank you to my story followers, favorites and alerters (if that's even a word), you mean a lot to me!
Enough babbling.
Feedback is love, people