All my friends ask me why I stay strong
Tell 'em when you find true love it lives on
that's why I stay here

And there's no remedy
For memory
Your face is like a melody,
It won't leave my head
Your soul is haunting me
And telling me
That everything is fine

"Elena stop! You will stay here while we go find Damon." Stefan orders.

"No! For the last time I am coming with." Elena argues.

They have been arguing over this subject since they arrived to their hotel. On and off they told her Elena and Caroline should stay here while they go out to make sure if something goes wrong they are nowhere near and they don't have to witness that. Elena strongly disagrees.

"Elena…we don't know what condition we will find Damon in….He would want this." Alaric says calmly.

"What? No! Is if you he is talking with in your dreams? No. Fucking let me go damn it!" Elena snaps.

"Elena…" Jeremy tries to calm her.

Everyone jumps at her tone and language. She is not one to use vulgar things unless there is a significant reason. Like now. They all gain their composure before speaking. "Elena…Caroline is staying with you too. We just… need to make sure he is safe first. Plus Damon would kick our asses if something happened to you." Stefan tries to calm Elena down.

She rubs her hands over her face for a few moments, regaining her composure before she nods. "Fine. I am trusting you guys with this. But I swear if you put him in harm or don't try your hardest…."

"We know." Alaric nods.

"Just….bring him back to me." Elena's voice cracks at the end giving away her vulnerability for the first time in a long time.

Alaric nods. "I will try my best. You know that."

Elena and Jeremy share a nod, both wanting a good outcome before they shut the door and are gone.

"Elena…It will be fine. You know they will try everything right? It is Damon we are talking about." She rubs Elena's arms soothingly.

"If he doesn't come back." Elena whispers. "I don't know what I will do."

Elena keeps going back and forth from having determination to get him back but preparing for the bad. She knows the stakes and the risks and she is expecting it all. She is trying her hardest to get him back, that will never change but she won't rely on the hope for happiness either because she knows in the end that would destroy her.

"Oh Elena…" Caroline sympathizes. "Don't think like that."

Elena shrugs Caroline's hand off. "But I am! He is everything to me Caroline! He is….God….I love him so much….I just…I don't…" Elena starts to cry.

Caroline is taken aback for a moment at Elena crying. She hasn't seen it in so long but brings herself together and holds her friend in her arms. "Elena, he could be walking into this room tonight. Don't cry until you have a reason." She comforts.

Elena tries to nod and believe what Caroline is saying but her sanity really depends on how the next few hours will go. He will either make it back or not. This is really her last chance. She wants to believe she will move on and live her life like he would want but….She can't imagine a life without Damon in it.

"Do you want to go to bed? It might be awhile…" Caroline asks Elena while still holding her in her arms.

Elena sniffles before sitting up and wiping her eyes. "I am scared I will see him again…" Elena admits.

"In your dreams?"

Elena nods.

"Isn't that a good thing?"

"I mean at first it was but now…I am scared I will rely on it too much and….Have hope." Elena speaks the words out loud for the first time and feels fresh tears running down her wet cheeks.

"Hope is a good thing Elena." Caroline tries to joke a little but Elena won't have it.

"You know what, whatever. I will go to bed." Elena says with no emotion etching her face and shutting her bedroom door behind her.

She closes the door and lets out a deep breath. She loves Caroline but talking to her was making Elena feel worse for feeling like this and reacting this way. She had to get away.

She eyes her bed like it is her worst enemy. She wants to be prepared for the worst so she doesn't have as much to lose. At the same time she would be extremely disappointed and worried if he didn't show up….She is lost.

Giving up and feeling exhaustion creep up on her she lies down on her bed and closes her eyes. She doesn't know what she will dream about or what will happen when she wakes up.

But one last thing crosses Elena's mind before she is asleep…..

If Damon doesn't make it back here, at least she will get to say goodbye.

She gasps sitting upright in opening her eyes to the beautiful meadow. She feels a grin spread across her face that she is near him. Her Damon.

The meadow is the same as ever but Elena notices small changes like the flowers starting to die….And the sky becoming darker. Elena's heart sinks and realizes whatever world or place this is….It's dying.

Her heart sinks. No. If this world is dying….the world that his holding Damon and Bonnie that means….They are dying.

She won't let him slip away….there has to be a way. She stands up and looks around. She is again in the middle of the clearing with silence suffocating her. The woods are all on either side of her where Damon and Bonnie probably reside…She still hasn't seen Bonnie….Elena suddenly feels selfish at how little she has looked for her best friend.

She shakily makes her way through the meadow and to the forest. Before this place had this happy energy to it that would lift you up but now….It is hovering over Elena like a deadline. She finally reaches the forest and begins her search in, she tries to speed up knowing she never gets a lot of time here and if Alaric and them aren't successful she wants to have a proper goodbye….She needs it.

Suddenly after a few minutes the sun from the meadow is gone and trees surround her on all her sides. That is all she sees….Trees. She is lost.

She curses and starts running in any and every direction. She will be damned if she doesn't get to see him. She is running all over the place not looking where she is even going or watching her surroundings much when she clashes into something.

"Umph." Elena falls onto her back.

"Elena?! God…" His voice sounds across from her.

Her eyes snap open at the sound and thanks to her vampire reflexes she is on her feet in an instant and hugging him as tight as she can, hanging onto him for dear life.

"Damon!" She gasps and nuzzles into his shoulder.

"Hey…Sshshh." He rubs her back. "What's wrong? Shouldn't you be happy to see me?" He jokes but she can tell he is worried that something went wrong.

"Alaric, Jeremy and Stefan left to see the witch….But…" Her voice cracks which makes Damon squeeze her tighter. "They wouldn't let me go…I am in my hotel room right now scared that this might be the last time I ever see you…" She breathes out and clutches him more.

"Baby…" He whispers into her ear. "Have more faith in little Gilbert, Broody and Monkey man." He jokes.

She cracks a smile. "I just wish I could go and see you when you come back…" Tears rush down her face.

"No….They are right. I don't know how I will be if I come back…I don't want to put you in danger or scare you….You are more important than that." He pulls back to cradle her face in his hands.

"But…"

Damon cuts her off. "Trust them." He stares deep into her brown orbs and she finds herself nodding. "And the second I find I am fine I will vamp my way to your hotel room and lock the door." He smirks before kissing her slowly.

She leans into the kiss and embraces it, both of them knowing it could be their last. She wraps her arms around his neck and brings him painfully close.

He groans but again reluctantly pulls away. "You have to go soon. I feel it." Damon rests his head against hers.

"Where is Bonnie?" Elena finds herself finally asking.

"She is on the other side of…whatever place this is. There is a hotspot there that lets her communicate with Zarah well….Whereas your hotspot is here…Plus she wants to give us privacy knowing…." Damon trails off but she knows what he is thinking.

Knowing these dreams could be their last moments together.

"You two getting along?" Elena half smiles and looks up at him, changing the subject.

He scoffs but before he can answer Elena sees the bright light blinding them once again, taking her away from him she looks quickly up into his cerulean eyes. "I love you. Forever."

"I love you too…And if I don't make it out….please mov-"

But she silences him with a hard and bruising kiss before she is pulled away from him.

And gone.

...

"Elena?!" A voice calls near her. "Elena!"

Elena snaps her eyes open and looks around for what brought her awake but finds Caroline hovering over her with a frown.

"You were thrashing and mumbling…It was weird." Caroline explains and hands her a mug of blood.

Elena quickly takes it, finding she is hungrier than she thought. "How long was I out?" She breathes heavily.

"About four hours." Caroline shrugs and takes a seat at the foot of her bed.

Elena groans. "I saw him again…" She confesses.

Caroline perks up, raising her eyebrows and sporting a grin. "Oooh what happened!"

Elena sighs. "Not much…There is never enough time…" She bites her lip to stop her from breaking down but continues. "I told him the boys were on their way…And he agreed with their stupid plan to leave me behind." She grumbles.

Caroline laughs. "Of course he did. What else?!"

"I mean not much…We hugged…Kissed…I asked about Bonnie and I guess she is on the other side of wherever they are and busy communicating with Zarah….Then we said goodbye…just in case…Well we tried but we got pulled apart." Elena sighs resting her head against the headboard. "Plus…This is our last chance….When I was over there Caroline….The world was dying…It is running out of time…We are running out of time."

Caroline rests her hand on Elena's leg through the blanket. "They are trying their hardest….That is all we can hope for is that we try our best."

"Maybe I should call them…" Elena bites her lip.

"No, Alaric said he will call if something happens." Caroline scolds. "You don't want to mess something up."

Elena sighs and closes her eyes. "I just need to fast forward this day….This is the worst day ever…Not knowing if he will make it back or not…" She lets out a shaky breath.

"I know Elena…" Caroline squeezes her leg comfortingly. "Trust me if something like this happened to Stefan….God…" She shakes her head of those thoughts.

"Yeah it sucks." Elena nods.

"And all because he sacrificed himself for Stefan…I will never thank him enough or look down on him…That was completely selfless…And dumb but incredibly selfless."

Elena cracks a smile. "It was pretty dumb. It is okay, you can say that. God I wanted to slap him when he told me about it….At least compel someone to do it for us but he wouldn't let me…There was nothing I could do…." Elena shakes her head and feels her eyes burning again.

Elena and Caroline watched movies the hotel provided on the TV for several hours. Caroline did her best to take Elena's mind off of it. Elena loves her for it but she doesn't think Caroline really understands how Elena feels. She can't imagine living an eternity without Damon. He made her long existence after she became a vampire look bearable because she would be with him. Now that he is gone she really doesn't know what she would do….

Elena tries really hard to get absorbed into movie after movie Caroline put on but after they hit the seven hour mark Elena's anxiety was through the roof. What if something went wrong and they were in danger? What if it didn't work? What if like everyone's worst fear Damon isn't himself and they are dealing with that? God she really wants to know.

"Elena I can see your brain going at it again." Caroline warns.

Elena sighs. "I know…It has just been so long…"

"Elena, they are bringing two people from dead to living by a witch who they have never met and had to find….It takes time."

Elena nods thinking it over. Caroline is right. They came into Italy blind and not even knowing where the witch is….It will just take more time. And she knows Jeremy, Stefan and Alaric left armed and loaded so they should be safe….But Elena can't help but worry.

The watch a couple more movies and pass the ten hour mark and Elena is trying to focus on this movie Caroline put in about a waitress who ends up pregnant but her husband is abusive, weirdly enough Elena gets sucked into this movie and how forbidden her love with the mystery guy is that when she hears her phone ring she actually jumps and sits there for a few seconds in shock before vamping her hand to her nightstand and answering.

"Hello?!" Elena almost yells into the cell phone.

"Elena…He is here." Alaric's voice sounds through the receiver like an angel. "Damon and Bonnie are back."

Elena covers her mouth with her free hand and tries to reign in her emotions.

She has Damon back. Damon her lover, best friend and her everything is back on this earth where he should belong. God she actually thought she would never see the day. In that moment she felt her heart swell and her future burst right open at all the possibilities she can do now with him. Things she wanted to do only with him for her eternal life. And she can again.

"Can I…Is he…." Elena lets out a shaky breath. "Can I talk to him?"

"He is feeding on…several blood bags right now….He was pretty much desiccated when he came back to us…But other than that it is the same asshole as before." Alaric chuckles and Elena feels a genuine smile cross her face, something she hasn't felt in months.

"That's…..amazing." She chuckles and feels tears spring down her cheeks like she has for months now. But this time…They are happy tears. "How much longer till you get back?"

"I'd say two hours or so….Most of the time took finding her…Then trying to get enough power for the spell….I'll tell you all of this when we get back….See you soon Elena." He says and she can almost hear his smile over the phone.

Elena hangs up and feels her smile still on her face. A smile that will probably never go away. She turns to Caroline and Caroline has the same grin across hers knowing everything went okay and things just might be okay again.

"I am so happy for you Elena. This is your second chance….Not many people get that." She crawls over where Elena is on the bed and squeezes her frame.

"I know….I won't take it for granted ever again." Elena shakes her head.

And she means it.

All the breaking up and getting back together was useless and just took time away from each other that they didn't have. The second he comes back she won't care how toxic they are, what people think. She loves that man and nothing can stop her now.

She just has to wait.

Review?

Sorry long wait, I am writing other stories and then got sidetracked by you know...Life. But i would never abandon a fic.

This was never meant to be a long and detailed story just a short sweet one i had in my head.

Should be about another chapter or two left, depending how long they are. Xo.

Hope you all liked it. Until next time. :)