AN: As always..you guys are the best. You really really are awesome and I want to thank you so much for your support! :)
All the reviews, the alerts, the favorites...wow. Just thank you lol. Keep them coming, please! I love to know what you think.
XOXO G
"Hello, Elena.." Liz Forbes said, smiling softly. "May I come in?" She asked, followed by the other cop.
And Elijah. Who was standing behind them with an unreadable expression on his face, as he saw Damon and Elena holding hands.
"Sure, Liz." Elena said with the same tone.
As they came in, Damon reclutantly let go of her hand, looking at her and smiling reassuringly, even though it seemed so sad. She knew what it meant. He thought that this was goodbye, that no matter what he said, now there was Elijah there for her. But how wrong could he be? He didn't know the first thing about her 'relationship' with Elijah. He had probably let himself fooled because he saw them holding hands at the Grill, and over-heard her talking with Caroline. She couldn't blame him, but he still got it all wrong.
But what if he said that he wanted to be with her just because he was feeling pity? Why did he change his mind now? Though she saw the look in his eyes when he said those words. He meant them. She had to believe that.
She smiled sadly at him too, already feeling the loss of his touch. She had to go through what happened last night again..and she couldn't have the person that she wanted the most near her.
"Come on Jamie, let's go take something to eat.." Damon whispered to him.
Jamie obviously couldn't hear what she was about to tell. He was just a kid.
"But we still have to give Lena the cookies that we baked her.." He pouted with his tiny voice.
"We'll bring them to her another time, okay?" Damon asked as Jamie nodded disappointed.
Elena smiled at the thought. They baked cookies for her, and all she wanted to do was tell them how much she appreaciated the simple gesture and how important they were for her. She let two silent tears escape, and immediatly wiped them away.
Elijah was by her side in a second, holding the same hand that Damon was holding just one minute before. The contact wasn't the same. The warmth and the rightness that she felt while holding Damon's wasn't there.
"Elena, if you can't.." He was saying sympathetically.
"I'm fine." She cut him off shortly, taking a breath.
She gave one last glance at Damon, wondering if when he was out of that door, it would be all over for good.
"So.." Liz started, taking a seat on the chair next to her bed.
The other cop was still standing straight with a blocknotes.
"Can you describe me what happened exactly, Elena?" She asked, looking intensly at her.
It was harder to talk or even think about it without Damon beside her.
She cleared her throat. Elijah's hand was still holding hers, but she kept it flat. It didn't do anything to her.
"I..I was driving, when I stopped at a traffic light. Five seconds after I had two men breaking my window, and pointing a gun to my temple." She said, while cold shivers passed through her body at the vivid memory.
"And then…" She was saying, but as she remembered how roughly that man grabbed her and touched her, she couldn't make it. Not now.
She took a deep breath to not cry, but it seemed useless. Her heart was already beating too fast as she began to panic. She didn't want to go through that again. Those men and their evil figures were still in her head, crystal clear.
"One of them grabbed me by the shoulders, then he started touching me and…I'm sorry.." She said shaking her head, as she burst into tears.
"Oh my god, Elena." Elijah said, pulling her into a hug.
She really appreciated how concerned Elijah was. He was a really good guy..hell, he was pratically the perfect guy. But she didn't need his presence right now. It just annoyed her.
"Can you go get me some water, please?" She said pulling back, smiling.
"Sure." He nodded.
Once he was out, she snorted in frustration, as hot tears kept streaming down her face. Elena kept thanking God that those men didn't really go too far with her. Now she could just imagine what women who went through abuses could feel. But still, even if something much worse could have happened, she still felt scared. Like she could open her eyes and find them in front of her again. And how disprectfully they just rubbed off her mother's necklace kept passing through her mind. That, was what hurt her the most.
"Elena, are you sure you can keep going? Do you need something?" Liz asked, gently placing a hand on her shoulder.
"I just need Damon.." She said in a husky voice, that came out almost as a whisper.
Liz's eyes widened for a moment, seeming surprised.
"As in Damon Salvatore?" She asked.
Elena just nodded numbly, while resting her head on the pillow. She was starting to feel weak again. It was probably the painkiller.
"Okay.." Liz sighed. "I'm gonna call him, then. Maybe we came too early." She then said with a guilty face. "Jerry and I are going to have lunch now while you get some sleep, and in an hour or so we're getting back. Sounds good?" Liz asked smiling.
Elena nodded again, this time forcing a smile. Liz was Caroline's mother, they knew each other for a long time, so when she was around Elena felt protected and safe. She grew really fond of Liz, she almost saw her as a parental figure.
She tiredly closed her eyes, hoping to find Damon beside her once she opened them again.
He had seen her. She was fine. He had told her everything that was haunting him for weeks now.
He should have felt relieved, ligther..but why it did just hurt more, then? He wanted her so badly, that girl became such an important person for him and she didn't even realize how much she actually meant for him. He wasn't interested in anything else, no one else..she was all he could wish for. He had all the qualities to be called an asshole, but he didn't feel that way with her. She was the only one who could see right through him and his insecurities and not make him feel bad about it. How could he have been so stupid to let her go?
When he went to her room and admitted that he wanted to be with her, he was showing his greatest weakness, but at the same time, he never meant anything more than those words in his life.
But now she was with Elijah, and he had to accept that.
"We can still bring Lena the cookies later, right Uncle Damon?" Jamie asked hopeful, holding his hand as they walked towards the exit.
"Sure." Damon said smiling.
Thankfully Stefan and Caroline would come back in a week. Otherwise Damon didn't know how much he could have lasted. Having Jamie and Elena around gave him warmth, hell it was pratically perfection.
But it couldn't last. It wouldn't have lasted, so hopefully once they were gone he could go back to his old lifestyle. Or at least try, and fake to still want it, since it didn't do it for him anymore.
Deep down, he had always been a little jealous of his brother. He had Jamie and Caroline. Two people who loved him unconditionally every day of his life. While all that he had done in the years was pushing women away when he started to get attached, or they started to get attached. And not even just women..but people in general. At first he may have found it plesaurable and convenient, but after a while it just became hard to do.
Just as they were heading outside the building, Sheriff Forbes's voice called him.
"Damon!" She shouted.
Oh crap. Was something wrong with Elena?
"Yes?" He immediatly turned around, looking confused.
"Hi Jamie." The Sheriff said with a smile, lightly patting Jamie's head before focusing her attention on Damon again.
"Did something happen to Elena?" He immediatly asked, not even trying to cover the worry in his voice.
"Oh don't worry, she's fine. She's just..tired, you can understand. The other cop and I are giving her an hour to rest a little. But she asked for you, by the way." She said.
Saying that he was surprised, was an understandment. Elena wanted to see him? Maybe to tell him to stay away from her for good? Too many thoughts passed through his mind, and he didn't like them not even one bit.
"She asked about me?" He asked to Liz, raising his eyebrows in confusion.
She smiled a little. "Yes." She confirmed again.
"Maybe I can take Jamie to pick something to eat, while you go to Elena?" She then asked.
"Are you okay with it?" He asked to Jamie, who smiled approvingly.
"Bring here these." He said handing him the box of cookies.
Damon rolled his eyes in amusement. Since the moment they baked those cookies, all Jamie could think about was giving them to Elena.
"Alright..I'll tell her that you made them for her, okay?" He said giving Jamie a wink.
He nodded fiercely, still grinning. He took Liz's hand who brought him at the cafeteria in the hall.
Damon almost ran to pick the elevator and reach the second floor. He already couldn't wait to see her again even though he knew that it was no good for him. Damn, he hated this dipendence that he had from her.
When he got near her room, a nurse quickly stopped him.
"I'm sorry sir, Miss Gilbert said no more visits until this evening." She said.
"She spefically asked for me, the Sheriff sure told you." He said, not able to deny his annoyed attitude.
"Oh, you must be Damon then." She immediatly said, smiling a little.
"Yeah." He replied, giving her a sarcastic little smile.
His cocky attitude was still there, after all.
After the nurse let him in, he quietly closed the door, careful not to make too much noise. The room was a bit darker than before. They had probably lowered the shutters to make her rest better.
He couldn't help but smile lovingly at her sight. She was laying on her side all curled up. She was so beautiful. And she seemed so peaceful, almost like an angel. He quickly shook his thoughts off, not wanting to sound too cheesy..but it was the truth.
He still had to figure out why she had asked for him in the first place though. She was torturing him slowly but he loved every second of it.
He took a sit on the chair next to her bed, taking one of her flat hands in his and caressing it softly.
"I promise I will never let anything happen to you again, love." He whispered, squeezing her hand.
He still blamed himself for what happened to her. And probably always would have. But he meant those words, he would have always looked after her from now on.
Strangely, when she woke up, she didn't feel the fear or the anxiety that she felt while falling asleep. She felt light, peaceful, kissed…oh wait what? She lazily opened her eyes just to find Damon placing soft kisses on her cheeks and on the side of her mouth. So he came for her..again.
She felt goose-bumps taking form in her body. But this time not for fear or cold, but for warmth. Just having Damon an inch away from her, did crazy things to her system.
The important thing now was that he wash here. She actually felt relieved and more than ready to talk with Liz and take that heavy discussion off her chest.
She weakly wrapped her arms around his neck, breathing his intoxicating scent.
"Hey.." Damon said softly, pulling back to look at her face, "how are you feeling?" He asked while tucking her hair backwards.
"Much better." She said with a husky voice, smiling.
"Liz told me that you wanted to see me." He said smiling softly, as he took a seat on the side of her bed.
"Yes.." She took his hand again, feeling much more secure when she was holding it. "You know I still have to tell her everything about last night.." She was saying, "..and I have to tell you something, too." She said hesitantly.
His face literally lit up at those words, and she could see the hidden hope on his face. But as she was saying those words, someone knocked on the door. Goddamit, she thought. Why it always happened like that? She had a deja-vù of before and she felt incredibly annoyed as she found Liz and the cop entering in the room.
Every moment seemed the perfect one, but it always ended up ruined or interrupted. At least now Damon was beside her and hopefully wasn't going anywhere. As she saw Liz and the autoritary cop with her, she immediatly felt anxious all over again. Imponent figures always made her feel insecure.
She gripped Damon's hand tighter, and he returned her gesture, silently comforting her.
"So…are you ready, Elena? I promise we'll be quick and you won't have to think about it anymore." Liz ried to reassure her.
Wishful thinking..she thought. Still with Damon beside her everything was easier.
"Where's Jamie?" He suddenly asked.
"He's with the nurse." Liz replied.
Liz took a seat on the chair next to her bed. "You were at the part where that man grabbed you.." She said tentatively.
"Yes." She said, feeling more sure of herself now.
"He grabbed me tightly, while the other one was just searching for valuables into Jenna's car. I..I can't describe them precisely, though. I'm sorry Liz it was dark and one of them was wearing a cap.." Elena said shaking her head.
"Don't worry, Elena. That's not the most important thing. I just want to know the facts." She cut her off, giving her an encouraging smile.
She looked at Damon who seemed tense and stiff. His jaw was clenched and he seemed angry..dare she said that, furious. His expression almost scared her. When he noticed that she was looking at him though, he just gave her a reassuring smile, strongly squeezing her hand.
There it was the part that she hated the most. She took a deep breath.
"Then the one who was holding me knocked me on the ground, and the other one yelled at him because he wasn't being careful. I can definitely say that they were a team, even if they didn't seem very professional. But one of them was much more dominant than the other..at least I had this vibe." She explained.
"Typical." Liz nodded.
"As I told you, I didn't see much...I just noticed that they had deep voices, probably in their earl thirties. And one of them was called Fred, or something like that.." Elena said.
"Very good, Elena.." Liz said. "But did they..physically harm you, or did things that you need to tell us?" She then asked uncomfortably.
She was probably feelings uncomfortable not because of the question. Hell, as a cop that was your job. She was used to it. But because it was Elena who she was talking to. Little Elena Gilbert, the pratically almost sister of her own daughter.
Elena bit her lip, unsure of what to say. Luckily they didn't do anything to her..but should she tell even about the necklace? She didn't want to share that thought again. It hurt too much.
Seeing her being hesitant, Damon obviously thought about the worst. He got near her in a moment. Liz looked worried.
"Elena.." He said, cupping her face. "If you have something important to tell, do it. They're the only ones who can help you." He was saying softly, even though Elena could see that he was in pain.
She took the hands that were holding her face in hers, smiling softly at him. "Okay." She just said.
He didn't move. He sat near her, smoothly caressing her shoulder.
"They took my mother's necklace. Probably thinking that it was valuable.." She said, "...it was, for me." She said looking away.
Liz looked at her with hurt. "I'm so sorry, Elena." She said sincerely, standing up. "I promise you I will do everything possible to arrest those men and give you your necklace back, okay?" She asked.
She nodded smiling as she saw Liz and the other cop who wrote everything that she said in a blacknote heading out.
"I'm so sorry about it, Elena. But you'll see..it gets better, eventually." He said stroking her hair.
"I hope." She just shrugged numbly.
"Oh, before I forget.." Damon suddenly said changing subject, now grinning. "These are from Jamie and me. We made them together." He said chuckling.
"Oh my god, Damon..you don't even know how much it means to me right now." She said giggling. "With the food that they're giving me here.." She shook her head and made a face.
"You know, Jamie even told me to tell you that he made them all alone..so stay at the game. He's feeling really proud." He said winking.
"Of course." She said smiling genuinely.
They gazed at each other insensly, a look so intense that was hard to handle.
Another knock at the door interrumpted them and while she felt annoyed for the most part, the other one was kind of glad. The insensity in the room was just too much. But still, couldn't she have some freaking privacy in the room?
"I'm sorry, but visits are done for today." She nurse said before heading out again.
"Pain in the ass.." Damon muttered as she started giggling.
"Are you going to come back, tomorrow?" She now asked serious.
He lowered a little, to look at her in the eye.
"Of course I will." He said smiling. "But you better eat all your cookies, my dear." He said with his usual cocky smirk.
"Deal." She said laughing, shaking her head.
"See you tomorrow.." He said kissing her forehead.
"Tomorrow, cocky." She said mimicking his smirk.
A few hours later, Jenna got to the hospital to spend the night with her. Elena was very grateful to her aunt. She was always there for her and she still felt incredibly guilty about the car and everything.
"Hey.." Jenna said smiling, a bag on her shoulder. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine." Elena nodded. "I talked to Liz..at least I got it all off my chest, you know." She sighed.
"I understand, honey." Jenna said, caressing her hair. "It's going to be fine, you'll see." She smiled.
"I know.." Elena said. Someone else already told her...
"Anyway..I got a couples of movies we can watch tonight. But they're both chick-flicks so don't even start to complain." Jenna said pointing a finger at her.
"Okay, Jenna, whatever." Elena laughed. "You already know that I'll fall asleep in ten minutes." She teased her.
"I know." Jenna pouted.
"So..did the doctors say when I can leave? With the painkillers my leg is going fine, and I hate being into this room it's so depressing." Elena said as Jenna was putting on her pajama.
"You don't have major damages, so yeah you could actually leave whenever you feel to." Jenna shrugged, as she threw herself on the other bed.
"Okay, tomorrow it is then." Elena immediatly said.
Jenna chuckled. "Why...can't wait to see Damon?" She teased.
"Jenna!" Elena hissed. "Well...kinda, yes." She then said smirking, founding herself thinking about Damon. Again.
"You're head over heels for him, aren't you." Jenna said.
"Yeah…" Elena admitted with a sigh. "But I honestly don't know if he feels the same way too. He's always so sweet and caring with me, he has even told me that he wants to be with me..but I don't know, what if the only thing that he feels is pity?"
"Oh my god, Elena." Jenna said in disbelief shaking her head. "I can't believe that you actually believe what you're saying! Clearly he's crazy about you too. He's caring, he's sweet, he's nice..he has even told you that he wants to be with you. What else do you want?" She said incredulously.
"Plus you had to see when he brought you here. He was so panicked. God, he was even more panicked than me and Jeremy. His face and the way he talked about you pretty much said everything about his feelings for you. Believe me..those things are hard to mask." Jenna said.
"I know. He's such an incredible person and he doesn't even know it." Elena said, smiling softly. "I wanted to talk to him today. Twice, actually. But both times we got interrupted so I'm just waiting..for the right moment."
"Don't worry. He will wait for you." Jenna assured her. "I'm just sorry about Elijah..poor guy seems to be pretty into you, too." She chuckled.
"I know, and I'm sorry about that..it's just that it wouldn't have worked anyway, you know. He's a good friend but that's it." Elena shrugged.
"Have you told Caroline yet?" Jenna asked.
"Something.." Elena chuckled. "But you know how she is. She would immediatly tell Stefan so I prefer to tell her in person."
"Sure, I know how she is.." Jenna chuckled too. "Anyway I'm going to tell the doctors that tomorrow morning you're ready to leave, okay?" She asked.
"Okay." Elena yawned.
"I suppose that we're not going to see those chick-flicks, are we?" Jenna asked amused, forrowing a brow.
Elena didn't even reply to her as she fell deeply asleep.
"She just can't wait to dream about Damon.." Jenna said rolling her eyes and turning off the light.
That morning Damon just couldn't wait to get up. That night Jenna texted him saying that Elena would have got out of the hospital in the morning. She asked him if he wanted Elena to stay with her for a while, or just drive her to the boarding house already. Obviously, Damon didn't have to be asked twice.
He had even let Jamie stay home, so he could help him do the best 'welcome back' thing for Elena. That in the end, was just between the three of them. Still he wanted to do something special for Elena. She had just ricovered, taking her out somehwere wasn't even an option at the moment, so he asked to Jamie Elena's favorite dishes and movies.
He wanted her to feel home.
"So, are you really sure that pasta carbonara is Elena's favorite?" He asked as he paced around the kitchen room.
"Yes, Uncle Damon." Jamie sighed. "One night Elena came to dinner and daddy asked her which was her favorite dish. And she replied pasta carbonara." He affirmed with a firm nod.
"Dessert?" He then asked.
"Strawberry cheese-cake." Jamie said with another affirmative nod.
It was amusing to see how sure of himself and proud about knowing all that little things he was.
"Okay." Damon stated. "So while I take care of these things, why don't you do a drawing for Elena? Just, not with us holding hands this time okay…" He said uncomfortably.
"Okay Uncle Damon!" Jamie affirmed as he ran picking his stuff.
He put all his stuff on the counter, sitting on a tool and starting drawing. The kid seemed to really love doing that.
"I almost forgot..do you even know her favorite movies?" He asked.
"Mmh..no." Jamie said pouting. "Though I know that she likes Disney movies too and I have all..so can we watch one of them later? Please?" He pouted.
"Fine." Damon replied, rolling his eyes.
If someone would have told him two months ago that he was going to actually watch a Disney cartoon with his nephew, and the girl he was crazy in love with, he would have laughed in their face. But now he couldn't seem to get enough of that, apparently.
"Just don't tell to that broody of your father that you skipped school today.." He said annoyed, rolling his eyes. "Deal?"
"Deal." Jamie replied with a grin.
"Okay so these are your painkillers, and this one the pomade for your bruises..alright?" Jenna said for the millionth time once she pulled at the boarding house drive way.
"Yes, Jenna. I got it. If I feel too much pain I can take at last two painkillers at day. And I have to put on the pomade every night before going to bed." Elena replied rolling her eyes.
Sometimes Jenna reminded her of her mother. The apprehensive side was a family thing.
"Okay. Don't hesitate to call me if there's any problem.." Jenna said. "But oh, wait, you have your prince charming silly me." She then teased.
"Goodbye, Jenna. And have a good day!" She replied sarcastically, sticking her tongue out.
There it was her heart that was beating like a drum once again. She felt nervous but at the same time excited. Things with Damon were going to change..if in good or in bad, she still didn't know.
She opened the door quietly, hearing some music and noises coming from the kitchen. She istantly frowned. What was all that about? Damon knew that she was coming, right? She tip-toed to the kitchen just to find Jamie drawing on the counter, and Damon cooking. And oh god…what that carbonara smell? She was almost drooling.
Jamie immediatly saw her but she shushed him with her finger. She wanted to surprise Damon. He was on his back so he couldn't see her, and the music that they put at the radio was pretty loud.
She got near him and pinched his hips. "Hello cocky." She said lowly, with a grin on her face.
"What the – " He was saying almost pissed off as he pratically jumped. As he turned around, his eyes were pratically glittering with surprise though. "Elena.." He said, and without even thinking he took her in his arms. "What are you even doing here this early? You ruined my surprise.." He pouted.
Now it was her turn to be surprised. "Is this for me?" She asked as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
He seemed confused at the gesture, but quickly accomplished wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer.
"Of course.." He said smirking. "And wait until you see the dessert." He winked at her.
"Thank you." She whispered, softly kissing his cheek, letting her lips rest on his cheek for a little too long.
"Elena.." He then said, pulling away slightly. "What are we doing here? I mean you're with Elijah..and hell I would be willing to be your friend just to have you around, but you're making it incredibly difficult." He said looking at her intensly in the eye.
She looked at him with understanding in her eyes. She didn't mean to hurt him or upset him.
"I know." She nodded. "But I'm not with Elijah, Damon. He's just a friend and you got it all wrong when you saw us together.." She said.
"Well Elena I don't know what for you is 'getting wrong', but I saw you holding hands, and the way he looks at you. Not to mention what you said to Caroline on the phone.." He said the last part trying to sound bitter, but his eyes were screaming vulnerability as he bit his bottom lip.
She started caressing his soft raven locks, lightly kissing him on the lips. "I wasn't talking about Elijah." She confessed, looking at him in the eye.