"There's like a line forming in Matt's living room to see you," said Stefan stepping on to the back porch.
"Let me guess you cut the line," smiled Damon at his brother.
"What can I say I'm a little rebel!" said Stefan pulling his brother into a much needed hug. "A lot has changed since you've been gone."
"I'm beginning to pick up on that," he said looking back towards the house.
"She's sleeping with Enzo."
"Good for her."
"Look, in her defense. She lost you and she took it pretty hard."
"So everyone keeps telling me," snorted Damon.
"I don't agree with what she did, but I think I understand it. I think he just kept her head above water when she was drowning in grief. He was the closest thing she had to you," said Stefan watching closely as Damon began pacing back and forth.
"I was always in the state of changing myself so that I could be good enough for her."
"She made you better. Everyone knew that," said Stefan putting his hands in his pockets.
"She made me someone I didn't recognize. When I was away with Bonnie I got a chance to just be me and figure everything else out along the way."
"I'm sorry it took us so long to figure out how to bring you back."
"You're my brother and you did everything you could. I'll never forget that."
"I'll let you get back to it then. I'm sure I'm holding up the line," said Stefan patting him on the back.
"Yeah, everyone's here, but Caroline," said Elena blocking Stefan's retreat. She wasn't ready to have this conversation with Damon.
"She'll be here she had an errand to run first," said Stefan. He trusted his brother, but if he was going to introduce Emma he'd have to do it right. Stefan squeezed past her and left the two alone.
Elena cleared her throat, "You slept with my best friend."
"You slept with mine. Besides things aren't that simple between me and Bonnie," he said looking at her sharply.
"You mean she's pregnant?" asked Elena wanting to know how he felt about Bonnie from his own mouth.
"I mean I love her."
"You've been gone a long time. You were trapped with the only other person who could understand what you were going through. So yeah maybe you fell in love, but you're home now. You know the truth, Damon."
"Which is what?" he asked not appreciating what she was inferring.
"You were only with her because I wasn't there."
"Is that why you are with Enzo because I wasn't there?" he asked. Of course she would be pushing her reasoning off on him.
"Maybe in the beginning. . ."
"And now?" he asked genuinely curious.
"Now I think I really do care about him."
Damon shook his head and huffed, "Then exactly what is this about Elena? You go be happy and I'll do the same."
"I don't want you to hurt Bonnie because you still have feelings for me. Don't start this poor excuse of a relationship out of revenge."
"You don't get to talk about her like that and you don't get to talk about me. You don't know who we are. Not anymore," fumed Damon.
She sighed, "You're right, but I do miss you. Not in some cheesy, let's hold hands and be together forever way. I just miss you. Plain and simple. I miss your presence in my life. I miss you always being there for me. I miss my best friend."
"As long as you can respect that I'm with Bonnie now. Will always be friends?" he said giving her a hug. He looked up to see Bonnie watching them through the glass patio doors. He let Elena go and went up to Bonnie who was now standing in the kitchen.
"Please don't worry, I only love you," he said grabbing her and giving her a kiss.
Elena walked past them quietly looking away feeling like she was intruding on their moment. Then a thought occurred to her Jeremy still didn't know. He wasn't going to handle it as good as she had. She was going to have to call him and see where he was and maybe try to head him off.
"We have an announcement to make to everyone," said Damon breaking their kiss and pulling her out of the kitchen.
"I don't think we should," said Bonnie pulling away from him.
"Why not?" he asked worried.
"Mason, said if I tried to rescue you," she began.
"Wait, Mason," asked Damon confused.
"Yeah, I'll explain that later. Just please don't hate me."
"Never," he said looking at her with concern in his eyes.
"He sad that if I rescued you there was a chance that I might lose the baby," she said dabbing at her hands.
Damon took a deep breath and listened to her stomach, "The hearts still beating its strong rhythmic. Everything's fine."
"I still could've hurt the baby."
"But you didn't. When I was with the Augustine's no one came for me. No one missed me not Stefan no one. You saved my life and now that we're back we're going to make sure nothing happens to this little one."
"I think we should go to the doctor tomorrow," said Bonnie.
"Agreed In the mean time, I want to share our happiness with our friends and family," he said kissing the back of her hand.
"Okay, let's do it."
They came into the living room together and sat on the couch. Elena was talking frantically on the phone to who Damon assumed was Jeremy. Caroline, Alaric and Matt sat around them.
"So what happened to you guys? Where have you been all this time?" asked Caroline happy to see them both, but for very different reasons.
"Long story. Wait for the movie," smirked Damon no way was he sharing what happened to them with Caroline. If Bonnie wanted to that was her choice, but it wasn't happening tonight.
"What he means is that we have an announcement to make?" said Bonnie.
"Well, shouldn't we wait for Elena and Jeremy," commented Caroline looking back at Elena confused. "Why is she telling Jeremy to go back to our house?"
"Our house?" asked Damon looking at Stefan eyebrow raised.
"I'll explain it later," said Stefan waving the question away.
"So why can't Jer come here?" asked Matt equally confused.
"Probably because I'm about to announce that I'm pregnant," said Bonnie.
"Congratulations," said Matt coming up to give her a hug.
"Yeah, congratulations," said Alaric.
Caroline clapped her hands together excitedly before pausing, "Wait, whose the father?"
"Damon," said Stefan looking at his brothers wide grin.
"How is that possible?" said Matt his expression turning from one of joy to disgust. "Ah man, Jeremy's going to flip."
"We're vampires we don't have children? Right?" asked Caroline wondering for the first time if things might be different for her and Stefan.
"Well, I wasn't. . ."
"No, that hasn't changed vampires cannot have children," interjected Bonnie.
"Then how did it happen?" asked Alaric curiously,
"It doesn't matter," said Bonnie the words of Mason ringing her head. That the world they had escaped from can never be known to others.
"What do you mean it doesn't matter?" asked Matt. "Sorry, but I have to stick up for my friend here.
"Are you seeing each other now? You don't have to do this just for the babies sake?" said Caroline.
"I'm 16 weeks along so no the how doesn't matter. What does matter is that we care about each other and that developed way before there was ever a baby," explained Bonnie.
"Bonnie, I thought you were smarter than that. How can you fall for himmm," commented Caroline looking Damon up and down.
"Jeremy's not going to change how we feel for each other," spoke up Damon ignoring Caroline's little jab.
"I think we need need to cut Bonnie some slack. She has a right to be happy. Jeremy has all of us he will be fine," said Alaric.
"I'm going to tell him the truth as soon as I see him."
"You mean you have no problem with this?" asked Caroline turning to Elena who was still on the phone.
Elena put the phone down, "I'm fine, Care."
"Why because you have Enzo. Whats the world coming to," said Caroline sitting back on the couch in a huff.
"I'm going to hold you to that, Bonnie. I know you've always been good and honest. So you've got to tell him the truth or I just may have to do it for you," said Matt.
"You're about to get your chance," said Elena hanging up the phone. "I tried to keep him away."
Jeremy came barreling through the door and slowed after everyone turned around to stare at him. "What did I miss?"
The End
Authors Note: thanks for everyone who left a comment. Reading some of your thoughts really made me laugh and kind of pushed me to keep writing. Some fun story trivia: The title the Vision's Theft derives from Damon. He keeps having what he thinks are visions of Stefan seeing him everywhere. It's this vision that will take him away from Bonnie. Thus the title of the story The Vision's Theft.