I can't be the only person who thought Thursday night was the worst night of TV ever! I was afraid that was going to be the outcome. It's sad that Damon is always villainized but is always making sacrifices for Stefan. And what a sacrifice! I don't think I've shed that many tears watching a TV show since the Friends series finale. Sooo, I feel I owe you an apology. I wish I could post an uplifting, happy chapter right now but, sadly, we are at the point everyone has been waiting for: what went wrong? Just remember, there's more to every story than meets the eye so don't get disgusted and give up on Damon. OK, I'm going to go hide behind my couch so anything thrown can't hit me.

Chapter 14: Somehow It All Went Wrong

THEN

"This is why I love having your brother visit!" I cackled. Stefan had been visiting more and more often and today he had brought with him a scrapbook which he referred to as Damon Salvatore: This is Your Life. Among the pictures I had seen so far was the obligatory naked bath picture, shots of Damon and Stefan on Christmas morning, and a sweet picture of two-year old Damon curled on his mother's lap. I could see in that picture just how much he looked like his mother. Now I was busy laughing at a picture of Damon with mullet.

"Stef, remind me to burn this book later…just before I kill you," grumbled Damon before tickling my sides. "And you, missy, better watch out because when I get my hands on old pictures of you, the mocking will be ruthless!"

Turning the page, I found a picture of Damon in his high school lacrosse jersey. The royal blue shirt brought out his eyes and despite the fact that he hadn't yet developed that Greek god body, he was still heart stoppingly handsome. "I'm sure you had every girl in school swooning over you just by breathing," I commented.

"Swooning? Hell, try dropping their panties at the blink of an eye. Damon's playboy reputation started about the time he could drive!" laughed Stefan.

Damon was in the middle of giving me a peck on the lips when he felt me stiffen. "You're not helping, brother," he singsonged.

"Truth hurts, brother."

"And on that note, I need to run. I've got to go barricade myself in the library for a few hours to edit my senior project."

As I hopped up from the couch, Damon threw a pillow none to gently at Stefan. "Now see what you did, dick?" Giving my hand a tug, Damon easily pulled me down on his lap. "Don't go. Ignore him and maybe he'll go away. Then we can have the apartment to ourselves for hours and hours and hours," he murmured against my neck between kisses.

"As tempting as that sounds, I really do have to go work on my paper for a few hours. That's what I came by to tell you before I got carried away looking at the scrapbook. I'll call you when I get home." I said before adding in a whisper, "Believe me, I'd much rather spend the day in bed with you…naked."

"You're so mean," he whined before kissing me again and walking with me to the door. "I love you, baby."

"Did you just say love?" called out Stefan in a shocked voice.

"Shut up, dick!" answered Damon before giving me one last toe curling kiss and shooing me out the door.

~~~~~TVD~~~~~TVD~~~~~TVD~~~~~

Graduation loomed ahead of us and I was spending more and more time in the library. Every second not working on my paper was being spent with Damon. I didn't know what was going to happen with us. I knew that he was planning to stay in town for the summer but after that he would end up where ever he got a job. I purposefully tried to avoid conversations about the future. I didn't know what he had in mind and I didn't want to even consider him leaving and me staying behind. I couldn't begin to fathom my life without him. Adding to the stress was the fact that Damon was busy himself. There were times that I tried to call him on study breaks but either couldn't reach him or I got a text that he couldn't talk right then and would call later.

My least favorite place to be at the moment was at home. Asking Rebecca to move in had been a mistake. Every pledge class has one girl who doesn't honor the dating code. She flirts with every guy even if he is dating one of her sisters. Rebecca had taken on that role in her pledge class. Much to my chagrin, she had set her sights on Damon. For the past month, she had become nothing short of a nuisance. Every time he was at our apartment, she made a spectacle of herself. If she wasn't trying on clothes and asking his opinion then she was monopolizing the conversation. She really got under my skin when she started finding ways to touch him. She'd run in the room and hug him or when he was sitting down she would walk by and pat him on the head. It was all little stuff but she was just about to push it too far. It had gotten bad enough that I was making sure we were spending less and less time at my place. He had no roommates so it was much more convenient to go to his apartment. I hadn't told Damon the worst part. Since I had been spending more time at the library, Rebecca was quick to point out that I was leaving Damon alone too much and if I wasn't careful, some other girl would be happy to take my place. She never said it but I knew that her name was at the top of that list.

I was getting close to being done with my senior research project. I knew that if I had one weekend with no interruptions that I could finish it. All of my classes were done. My professors had given the seniors the last couple weeks of school off from class to finish their projects. Once mine was done I would have nothing to do until graduation. That meant plenty of extra time to spend with Damon. That alone made it worth it to give up one weekend for the library as he was my main priority.

"I'm not going to be around this weekend." We were curled up on the floor of his living room after a pillow fight. I had made the first blow but he had easily taken me down and ended it.

"You think you can finish it?"

"I think so. But I'm going to have to give it my undivided attention so you know what that means." He gave me sideways glance. Damon understood that I had to get my project done. He was a supportive boyfriend but he hated the thoughts of me being stuck alone in the library. It had become a part of the usual routine for him to sneak food into the library. It was really sweet but it always ended up taking time away from my work since he never delivered and left. The library was full of secluded corners and we had discovered quite a few of them.

"You know I don't like you being over there by yourself."

"I know but the sooner I get this done the sooner I can relax."

"And the sooner I can plan a private little celebration. You missed out on Spring Break, I think we should go somewhere for some time away this summer."

"I like how you think, Mr. Salvatore."

"Tell you what, I'll stop by your place each night around eleven and see how you are getting along. I know you're going to be busy so I promise I won't stay. I'll just check on you and tuck you in then I'll be on my way."

I worked all day the next day. The only break I took was when I went to a bookstore to buy a card for Damon. After this weekend, we would both be finished with school and I had my own little celebration in mine. I found a flirty card with a verse that said, "I got you something special for your graduation," then inside it said, "So come over here and unwrap me." Cute but sexy, just like him. Friday night went well. I was exhausted and almost asleep when Damon got there at eleven just as he had promised. He put on some Miles Davis, poured me a glass of red wine and asked me to fill him in on how my work was going. Then he kissed me goodnight and held me until I fell asleep. At some point he let himself out and I woke up rested and ready to work the next day. Saturday night, I was so engrossed in my work that I forgot to keep up with the time. It was almost one in the morning when I realized what time it was. I rushed home but Damon was already gone and Rebecca couldn't wait to point that out to me as soon as I walked through the door.

"You just missed Damon. He seemed to think that you were going to be here around eleven."

"I know. We were supposed to meet but I let the time slip up on me. Crap! I had promised him that I would be here!" I was furious with myself. I had only a few minutes with Damon each night and I had missed out tonight.

"That's OK. I kept him company," Rebecca said with a laugh. She smirked before she turned, walked into her room and closed the door. I had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach that didn't get any better when I tried to call Damon and got no answer.

The next day, I tried to call again every hour but I never got an answer. I had finished my project and wanted nothing more than to see Damon to apologize for the previous night. I decided to call my apartment. Rebecca had mentioned having plans so I should be able to check my machine to see if he had called. Instead, Rebecca answered the phone. She was all giggles. "Maybe he found someone who had time for him. That tickles! Stop!" she whined not really sounding like she meant it.

"Rebecca, you OK. Do you have company?"

"Not all of us have our heads buried in books, Elena." With that she hung up. After trying his number one last time, I gave up and decided to go home after dropping off my finished project at my professor's office. Maybe I just needed to get a shower and rest a bit. Damon and I had plans for dinner around seven so I knew I would see him then. When I got home, I decided maybe I just needed a nap. Putting on Damon's practice jersey, I curled up in bed and tried to go to sleep. In the back of my mind, I couldn't stop hearing Rebecca's giggles. Something was up. I didn't know what but I knew I didn't like it.

I had made a trip to Victoria Secret earlier in the week and found a new black lace demi-cup bra with a matching thong for tonight. I put on my black short dress and strappy sandals and, after getting the card I had bought on Friday, headed out the door to Damon's. Wondering why he had been impossible to reach had taken a back seat in my mind compared to the excitement of seeing him.

"Wow, dinner smells delicious! I'm really sorry about last night. I let the time slip up on me and didn't get home till around one."

"It's OK. I knew where you were." He had greeted me with a bear hug and was yet to release me.

"I've been trying to call you all day. What have you been up to?" I was striving for curious but was afraid that I had just bordered on shrill.

"Oh, you know, a little of this and a little of that." His smile didn't meet his eyes and something about his actions didn't seem right. He seemed almost guilty. When he led me into the main room, I couldn't believe what I saw. The table was set and the room glowed with candlelight.

"Damon, this is amazing." He still hadn't told me why he wouldn't answer my calls and, though I was blown away by the romantic setting, it was still bothering me.

"I wanted it to be a special night. You've been working so hard lately and I feel like sometimes I might get in the way of that."

"Oh! I got you a present but you have to wait until after dinner to open it." He took the envelope in his hand and gave me a quizzical look. "Good things come to those who wait so don't even think about sneaking a peek," I teased as I reached up to brush a quick kiss across his lips. He caught me and hung on for dear life. "Damon, is everything OK?" The only answer he gave me was a kiss unlike any we had shared before. He was kissing me like it was the last time he would ever get the chance and it terrified me.

"Lena, I was going to wait until later to do this but we need to talk."

"Damon, what is it? You're starting to freak me out." My heart was beating so hard that he had to hear it.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking this weekend. When we met you were dead set on starting your own business but the closer we get the less you talk about that. You've gotten so focused on us that you have lost sight of your dreams. You've never said it but I can see it in your eyes. You want to get married. You want to have a family. It's obvious and it's one of the things I love the most about you but I'm just not there yet."

"I never said that was what I wanted."

"You didn't have to. All I have to do is watch your face when we run into kids somewhere and it's completely clear."

"I still want my career."

"And I'm standing in the way of that."

"No, you're not." I was getting more frightened by the minute.

"Elena, I got a job offer Friday. I'm going to be travelling a lot. In fact, I'm leaving in two weeks for France and I'm not sure when I'll be back." He spit it out like he was ripping off a band aid.

I felt like someone had stolen the air from my lungs. "Two weeks?"

"I know. It's sudden. I wanted you to know as soon as possible." He reached out to pull me towards him but I stepped away.

"If you wanted me to know then why didn't you take my calls all day long?"

"Lena, baby, I told you that I've been busy. I wanted to make tonight as close to perfect as possible. I went to the store for food then went out to get candles. I guess I just missed your calls. Besides, this isn't something I would've announced over the phone."

"Damon, I need some time to let this sink in. I've got to go," I said while turning to race for the door. He will not see me cry. I will not let him see me cry over him. Before I could turn the doorknob, he was pulling me into an embrace.

"Don't go. We need to talk."

"Damon, you've had days to adjust to this news. For me, this is coming out of nowhere. I thought we were happy! I thought you loved me," I trailed off into no more than a whisper.

"Baby, I do love you. Can't you see that's why I'm doing this? I love you enough that I have to let you go for now. I have to let you meet your dreams. I can't let everything going on with me get in the way of that." All I could hear was that he was leaving me. I felt dead inside.

"I love you enough that I could never let you go." He looked like a little boy lost.

"Please, Lena, don't go."

"I have to. I can't stay and pretend like everything is OK when you've already decided we're over."

"I haven't decided we're over!"

"You could've fooled the hell out of me." With that I stormed out the door and headed home.

When I got to my apartment, there was a note from Rebecca that she would be gone for a few days. I headed to the bathroom to take off my makeup and saw that my thoughtless roommate had left her clothes on the floor. Scooping them up I went to dump them in her room. The moment I walked in, I saw it: an opened box that once held a pregnancy test. On her pillow was a wadded up royal blue lacrosse jersey with "Salvatore" written across the back. Stunned, I walked back to my bedroom. I was putting things together in my head. My eyes were roaming the room trying to focus on something, anything that would anchor me enough for me to steady myself. Then I saw the picture of him in his high school lacrosse jersey-the picture from his scrapbook that I had loved so much I had a copy made and framed it. Suddenly, I knew. I knew why I couldn't get the sound of Rebecca's laughter out of my ears and why he had looked guilty when I walked in his apartment. "Oh God!" I sobbed. How could I have been so stupid? How long had it been going on? I had let him touch me, sleep with me. I did things with him that I had never even thought of doing with anyone else. I felt like I was going to be sick. I had to get out of there.

The phone had been ringing off the hook ever since I had walked in the door and in no time the machine was full of messages from Damon feigning ignorance and begging me to call him when I got home. I turned off the ringer and unplugged the machine. Most of my stuff had already been moved or packed and I had sold the furniture to one of my sorority sisters who would be moving into the apartment with Rebecca once I moved out. What packing I had left to do was over in no time. I called and left a message for Caroline explaining that something had happened causing me to have to move home early. I assured her I would call as soon as I could but under no circumstances was she to let Damon know where I was. I didn't leave a note for Rebecca. I figured Damon could tell her what had happened when they got together later.

In less than an hour, my car was loaded and I was backing out of my parking space and heading home. I was distraught. I knew I probably shouldn't drive. Hell, I couldn't even see straight but I had to leave before Damon decided to come pounding on my door. The last thing I remember seeing through my tears was something run across the road just before I swerved to miss it. I woke up in the hospital a week later.

~~~~~TVD~~~~~TVD~~~~~TVD~~~~~

AN: I'll be out of town for work for a few days and will not be able to post an update. So, I guess this is my version of a cliffhanger. I'll be back ASAP! Thank you for reading. Let me know what you think even if you hate me right now. Just remember, my Damon is always redeemable!