So the formatting on the website is all off so I hope this turns out alright formatting wise. Anyway, so I'm excited about this story so I hope you enjoy this next chapter! Sorry about the "BREAK" in a few places, once again, the formatting was all crazy and I wanted to post this. Enjoy!
March 2006
Elena walked as quickly to class as possible. She couldn't help but wonder when spring would rear its head. She'd gladly welcome it. She was getting sick of jackets on top of jackets with a scarf, gloves, and a hat. She just wanted summer back. She'd gladly take the humid New York summers over this.
She slipped into class and headed straight toward her usual seat, noticing her lab partner was already there.
"Good morning, Elena," he smiled up at her. She smiled back, happy to finally have a friend in her class.
"Hey, Stefan," she replied. They had Microbiology together the last semester and when they signed up for classes they decided to take Human Anatomy and Physiology together.
They were both in their final semester of school before their applications for medical school went in. They were like long lost siblings, they clicked instantly and it worked for them ever since.
"How was your weekend?" Stefan asked.
"Like every other weekend, I worked and studied," she laughed in reply. Her days were a constant battle of time management. When she wasn't working, she was at her small apartment studying. Her best friend and roommate, Bonnie, was always trying to convince her to go out dancing with her, but Elena always refused. She knew if she took just a little time off to have some fun, her workload would multiply every minute she was gone. She just wasn't willing to risk it.
Work hard, play harder. And one day she would certainly play hard. Maybe when the semester ended.
"What are you doing on Friday?" Stefan asked and he had that look that she knew so well.
"Stefan," she sighed, "I don't have time for you to set me up with anyone else."
Stefan and his girlfriend Caroline had been constantly trying to set her up on double dates with them. Not that the guys they picked weren't nice and genuine, she just didn't have time for a boyfriend.
"C'mon Elena," Stefan whined, "It's not a date. I just want you to meet my brother."
She was already shaking her head, "I'm not going to meet your media-hungry, big headed brother. No way."
"That's just what the papers make him out to be," Stefan defended.
"So he's not media-hungry and big headed?" She shot back while she reached into her back for her notebook and pen.
"Your silence tells me everything I need to know," She laughed. Before Stefan could respond their teacher walked in the door.
"Ok class, last class we talked about the juxtamedullary nephrons and the part they play in filtration in the kidneys," the professor started. Elena breathed a sigh of relief that Stefan couldn't finish that conversation. She threw herself into note taking to forget the whole thing.
Damon Salvatore was a pig. She knew it. He was on the cover of all local tabloids and newspapers. He was notorious for his hard ass ways. He was basically just a big jerk who would stop at nothing to make sure his company stayed on top. He was a shark that would take anyone out at the first sign of weakness. Of course that did great things for his business, but nothing for his personal life.
The only women he seemed to keep around were mostly just there for the night then gone in the morning. He always made sure it was that way, but that didn't mean he didn't want something stable if he had the time. If he was honest with himself, he just didn't trust women to stick around. If his own mother couldn't love him, then why would any other woman?
So he stayed where he was comfortable, just bringing women home for the night and then never seeing them again. He was happy with that.
Which is why when his baby brother, Stefan, told him that he wanted Damon to meet someone, he was very skeptical. He wasn't sure how Stefan talked him into it, but here he was on his Friday night sitting at a restaurant on the upper east side.
"So who is this girl?" He asked Stefan, who had come alone. Shockingly enough. He was usually always toting Blondie around with him. He decided that since Stefan was happy that he wouldn't question that relationship.
Before Stefan could answer, the most beautiful woman came to their table. She was thin and had perfectly olive toned skin. Her brown hair was down and flowed over her shoulders. She had gorgeous brown doe eyes and the tight pencil skirt she was wearing made her legs look like they were a mile long.
"Hi, I'm Elena, I'll be your server tonight," she said cheerfully, but stopped abruptly when she looked up to see who was at her table.
"Hey, Elena," Stefan said happily. He was looking way too satisfied with himself.
"Hi, Stefan," she said, less cheerfully than before. She obviously knew that look too.
"This is my brother, Damon. Damon, this is my friend Elena. We have human A&P together," Stefan said.
"Hello, Elena," Damon said smoothly.
"Nice to meet you," she said politely, "Now what can I get you two to drink?"
The night could not have moved more slowly. Stefan's blatant attempt to set her up with Damon was not going as planned. Damon tried everything he had to flirt with her, but she was not having it.
"So Stefan thinks we need to go out on a proper date," Damon mentioned while she was refilling their glasses. Stefan had conveniently stepped out to call Caroline.
"He does, does he?" She said coyly, putting on her best flirtatious smile.
"MmmHmm," he responded, wagging his eye brows and smirking at her. She internally rolled her eyes. This guy was so dense.
"Well, it's too bad I have a strict no-douche-bags policy," she deadpanned and turned to talk away.
"I'll make you eat those words, you watch," Damon called out from behind her. She rolled her eyes before turning around to face him.
"I'd like to see you try," she said before leaving a stunned Damon behind at his table.
-BREAK-
He wasn't sure what it was. Maybe her snarky attitude, maybe it was that she was the first woman to flat out deny him, but he wanted her. He wanted her bad.
She was just so gorgeous. Those long lean legs, her big brown eyes, her long shiny chestnut locks, he wasn't sure which part of her was his favorite. To be honest, they all were.
"Damon... Earth to Damon...," he didn't realize his name was being called until the slam from his office door being shut pulled him out of his thoughts.
"What do you need Stefan?" He asked, feeling sudden annoyance toward his baby brother.
"I was just dropping a few things off for Dad," he shrugged, "You looked like you were in a pretty deep stupor. Perhaps about a certain brunette waitress you met last night?"
"You're obvious when you're fishing," Damon said.
"And you are transparent when you're deflecting," Stefan countered.
"Ok, I surrender. Yes, I was thinking about Elena," Damon sighed. He wasn't sure how or why, but he always ended up telling Stefan the truth. That's how they were. Their father became a complete ass after their mother died when they were young. So they had learned that they only had each other to count on in the world.
"Well, what are you going to do about it?" Stefan asked.
"I don't know. She made it pretty clear that she wanted nothing to do with me," Damon sighed again. He hated feeling rejected. He was so used to getting what he wanted that he had a hard time accepting defeat.
"Well I happen to know that she runs every afternoon in Central Park," Stefan said, trying to act nonchalant. Damon's ears perked up at this. He wasn't going down without a fight. Once she got to know him, she'd never be able to turn him down. He was sure of it.
Damon jumped up from his desk and walked past Stefan.
"Where are you going? I was joking about the running thing," Stefan called out from behind him.
"Wait, you mean she doesn't really run in the afternoons?" Damon asked, feeling silly for believing Stefan so quickly.
"No," Stefan chuckled, "She does really run. But you don't. You really think you're just going to buy a pair of running shoes and run her down?"
Relief swept through his body so strong that he didn't even register Stefan's dig at him.
"Ya, that's exactly what I'm going to do," Damon said before walking out of his office.
-BREAK-
For as much as she was getting sick of the New York winter, she loved the afternoons. They provided the absolute best weather for running.
Whenever something was happening in her life that was stressing her out or weighting on her mind, she always decided to take to Central Park and run until it sorted itself out or until it didn't seem so bad after all. It was the best way to escape life for a while. All she had to focus on was the sound of her breathing and the vibrations that shook her frame as each foot pounded into the ground.
Today was no different. The only difference was for the first time she was running because she was afraid. A certain blue eyed man was haunting her every thought. And as much as she wanted to hate him, she didn't. That was scarier than anything she'd faced in her recent years in New York.
He was an ass. He was arrogant. He was all over the papers and he probably loved it. He was nothing what she was looking for. Hell, she wasn't even looking for a man. She was too busy finishing her senior year of college. Pre-med at that.
She always thought when she did date, she'd find someone whose eyes lit up at the sight of her. Who loved her, not treated her like a prize to be won. Who treated her like an equal. Someone who could be the father of her children. Be a loving and hardworking husband. And that person was definitely not Damon Salvatore.
She could feel her legs striking the pavement with extra force. The more she tried not to think of Damon, the more she thought of him, then the harder she ran. Her lungs were burning with the crisp air.
She pushed herself along the familiar trail, not paying much attention to her surroundings. She was out running this trail so often she had it memorized and this time of the afternoon, there was hardly any people in the park, let alone this small trail. She let her mind wander along with her feet until she ran headlong into a hard object.
She barely had time to process what happened before she found herself flat on the ground tangled with the person she had just ran into. Her breathing was still coming out in strong bursts so she lay in the grass for a few moments to let her breathing calm before she apologized for plowing into the poor pedestrian.
Well that was until he spoke.
"Fancy meeting you here," a melodic voice sounded from above her. She opened my eyes to be bombarded with ice blue ones.
She groaned and pushed him off her and he rolled onto the ground next to her.
"What are you even doing here?" She asked as she brushed herself off and got up off the ground.
She looked down on him sprawled out on the grass, looking way too pleased with himself.
"Can't a guy just go out for a run?" He asked.
When she didn't answer he continued, "Need a jogging buddy?"
She tried to ignore him, but when he waggled his eye brows she spurted her best idea yet.
"Only if you can keep up," she said flirtatiously, knowing he was the type to never back down from a challenge.
"Oh, I can keep up," he said, jumping up off the ground.
She rolled her eyes before starting off on her trail again.
"So what are you going to school for?" Damon asked as he fell in step next to her.
"Pre-med," she answered.
"So you want to be a doctor," he stated.
"No, I want to be a chef," she deadpanned sarcastically.
Damon asked a few more questions before he was too winded to speak. They jogged in silence for a while before Elena decided she would put him out of his misery.
She slowed to a walk to cool down and she could tell Damon was in pain and exhausted.
"Probably should've broken those shoes in before coming out here," she said, trying to suppress her laughter. She could tell that he had just gotten those shoes and she could only imagine the kind of blisters he was harboring in there.
He looked absolutely miserable and she couldn't help but feel a little bad for him.
"I know a few other things in my apartment we could break in," he retorted. And all sympathetic feelings just flew out the door. She just rolled her eyes.
"When can I see you again," he called out to her as she started walking away. She stopped and couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face. She worked hard to suppress it before turning around to face him.
"You're the one who found me here, so I think you'll figure out a way," she said coyly before turning around and walking away.
-BREAK-
Present Day...
Damon.
Drink.
She saw Damon. Damon Salvatore.
Drink.
After five years, he had only gotten more beautiful. And here she sat in her kitchen, nursing a glass of wine trying to calm down from the day she had.
After she had seen Damon they had no time to talk before she had to get the body to the morgue and move onto the next emergency and for once, she was thankful for the horrid sights and sounds of the ER. It was the only thing that kept her mind from Damon's shocked face.
But now here she was in her quiet kitchen and it was all hitting her at full force. She always thought she was prepared for what seeing Damon again would do to her if that ever happened, but she was very wrong.
Bang, bang, bang.
She nearly jumped out of her skin hearing the loud banging on her front door. She walked to the door and opened it without checking out of habit. Mystic Falls was a safe town, everyone knew everyone, so there was never a reason to be wary of the person on your doorstep. Until now.
Damon stood at her front door looking incredibly beat down and very drunk.
Before she could even speak, he stumbled past her and into the house before turning around to face her with heartbroken eyes.
"Why did you leave me?" He asked quietly. His words were a little slurred from the copious amounts of liquor she figured he had. He smelled like he bathed in it.
"You've been drinking," was her genius response.
He squinted his eyes and held his hand up to make a small space between his pointer finger and his thumb.
"A little," he smirked, looking awfully pleased with himself.
"Why don't you go sit on the couch and I'll get you some water," she said, trying not to upset him.
When she returned from the kitchen, a cold glass in hand, she was hit with the sight of Damon asleep on the couch. She was instantly thwarted with memories of watching him sleep many times, many years ago. She always loved when he was asleep, he always looked so young. It always seemed like the worries of the world were lifted off his shoulders just for that time.
She fought a small smile before covering him with a blanket, switching off the lights, and climbing the stairs to her room.
As much as she thought it would be hard to sleep with Damon just a floor below her, she had the best nights sleep she had in a long time.
She felt incredibly rested when she woke the next morning. She put on her robe before slipping out into the hall to check on Damon. She was almost to the stairs when she noticed something out of place. An open door.
Her heart dropped to her feet when she saw which door was ajar. She silently prayed that she would not walk in and see Damon in that room, but her prayers were in vain as she rounded the doorjamb.
There was Damon, his shoulders hunched like they did when he was upset, holding the only picture frame in the nursery.
"You shouldn't be in here," she said, trying to keep her voice even, but failing miserably.
"What is this, Elena?" He asked without turning around. She took in the room for the first time in a long time. She tried to shut it out and not think of it. Hell, she even tried to redo the room into an office or something. Anything but the empty nursery that haunted her everyday.
When she didn't answer, he trudged on.
"This picture? This child was born almost eight months after you left and you never bothered to tell me," he declared, only gaining steam as he continued, "You never thought I would like to know I had a child?"
He was almost yelling now and Elena was fighting a losing battle against the tears threatening to fall. Her heart felt like it was being torn right across the scars that she had worked so hard to heal.
"Damon, it's not what you think," she said quietly.
"Oh, so you cheated on me?" He bellowed.
Before she had a chance to answer, he slammed the frame down in its spot before storming past her, down the stairs, and out the door.
Elena could only stand there frozen in the wake of destruction. Her heart felt like it was bleeding out inside her. She finally let the tears fall as she folded in on herself and sank to the floor.
She cried out all the pains of the past five years, all the things she had to face alone. She cried out for her past with Damon, for the choice, the mistakes she made in leaving him.
She felt like the hard walls she had built up over the past five years had just been demolished in one fell swoop.
Finally, when her loud sobs calmed and the tears dried, she put everything back as it was, took one last look, and firmly closed the door vowing to never open it again.
So what do you all think happened with Elena while she and Damon were apart, what about what made her leave? We'll be telling the present day story in chronological order, but the past will come in spurts just like when you see someone, you're suddenly reminded of a time with them, and the memories never come in order. So that's kinda where I'm going. Thanks for reading!