Set between 2x17 & 2x18.

Elena entered the Boarding House with her brand new key. Technically she was not the owner just yet, but it was only a matter of days and Stefan had already given her the key.

She met Damon in the hall.

"Hey. Stefan's not here," he said as his greeting.

"I know. He's with Caroline, showing her some new hunt moves, or something like that.

He smirked. "Right. So that's how you kids call it these days."

"Shut up. I just came to get my calculus book."

He made a vague gesture towards the den. "Suit yourself. I have to go."

Without another word or even a second glance, he climbed up the stairs. Elena didn't move for a minute, a little bit dumbfounded. That was it ? No snarky remark, no flirting? Ok, not that she wanted to flirt with him, but still...

Frowning, she went to get her book before making her way back to the front door. Before she had the time to realize what she was doing, she found herself climbing the stairs.

What are you doing? A little voice resonated in her head. This is not a good idea. Just go away.

But despite her better judgment, she was now in front of Damon's room. His door was left ajar, so he noticed her immediatly.

"Still here?" he asked nonchalantly, obviously trying to pick out a shirt. "Well, make yourself useful then. Which one?" he asked, parading two shirts in front of him.

"Uh...the dark blue one," she said, and added without thinking, "because of your eyes."

"How cute of you to notice," he replied with a mocking grin. She ignored his comment and asked the first thing that crossed her mind. She wanted answers and Damon couldn't lie to her. Elena also felt she needed to justify her presence in his room.

"Have you heard anything from Katherine ?"

He shook his head. "No. For all we know, she's probably already dead."

"How do you feel about that?" She couldn't help but ask.

He glared at her before saying tartly,"What are you, a shrink? How do you feel about your biological mother turning herself into dust in front of you?"

Ouch. She should have known that asking Damon to share his supposedly non-existent feelings never ended well.

"I still have some nightmares about it," she answered quietly.

He sobered up and put back the unused shirt in the closet before turning to her.

"I'm sorry", he said, and it never ceased to amaze her how he could suddenly drop the bad ass act and genuinely show some interest. It was incredible how he had changed in one year. In some ways he was more human that some people she knew.

Then again she knew a colorful bunch of people.

She looked around and it suddenly dawned on her that she was in Damon's bedroom. She didn't even remember coming in here before. Elena actually wasn't very sure of her reasons to be here right now. Whatever they were, they were not good ones. By being in this bedroom, it created a sudden intimacy that was definitely not supposed to exist between them.

Feeling a little bit oppressed, she mumbled "I have to go" and turned around. It felt like she was fleeing, but she couldn't for the life of her figure out why.

Surprised by her demeanor, Damon followed her. She was almost at the front door when he called her. "Hey, are you ok? Where are you going?"

"I'm fine", she answered, but didn't look at him. "Bye Damon.", Elena continued out the door and closed it behind her. Damon was left confused and quite baffled.

"What did I do this time?"

Elena drove for a few minutes before pulling over to the side of the road. What happened to her in there ? She had no idea.

If she was going to be honest with herself, it might have something to do with those very unwanted emotions that had been plaguing her every time she was in his vicinity. With all the stuff happening with Klaus, the curse, and the fact that she was in love with Stefan – right?- She had tried to quell them.

But it was all in vain. Lately those emotions had increased with a frightening intensity.

"I'm not Katherine. I'm nothing like Katherine. I love Stefan," she said out loud, feeling like a complete idiot.

Maybe the fact that she was supposed to be the sacrifice in some Aztec ritual had been playing tricks on her mind and her heart. Yes, that was definitely it, she decided, starting the car again.

What else could it be, anyway?