Juno: no worries. I'll keep this one going. Updates might just be a bit more sporadic. I might also go back and forth a little bit in time, and I'm still uncertain whether I want to stay close to canon or deviate a bit and give them a happier ending...

Also, if anyone has a prompt or an idea that they'd have liked to see on the show, I'd love to hear it. Maybe I can work something in here.

Anyways. Sorry if this one is too weird and wistful. It just kinda... happened that way.

...

"Oh my gosh, okay, I have a confession," she started without the usual preamble, her words more of a stream-of-consciousness than a diary entry, "I'm in love with Enzo. Yes, Damon's Enzo. The man who threatened you all, who almost killed your brother, and who was - very awkwardly, might I add - pining for Lily Salvatore for way too long. That Enzo. Except, now he's my Enzo."

She paused briefly, allowed the pen to rest on the paper as she stared at her words. It felt good to write it all down, finally.

"You know, for the longest time I was so afraid you'd judge me for it. I mean, I know I wouldn't actually have to live with that, since I'll be dead by the time you'll awaken, but still. It doesn't exactly feel very good to think you'd come back to only be disappointed in me, or worse, hate me.

But then Damon was kind enough to point out that you chose him - who arguably did way worse things to you and your family than Enzo ever did - to be your boyfriend. You know how convincing he can be... So yeah, here I sit, finally writing this all out, because I promised to keep you in the loop about my life.

You're my best friend, Elena. And I want to believe that you'll understand me after you've finished reading all this.

…

Enzo really is not a bad man. The strange thing is, I guess I always knew that, deep down. Remember when I was the Anchor? Gosh, how he got on my nerves when he showed up dead, harassing me. But it's easy to look past that and spot the real him underneath. It took me a while - and some temporal distance - to see it, but he was just so very angry and so very afraid back then.

He was so broken and lonely. The memory is hard for me, because the me-now regrets that I didn't see it back then and that I didn't treat him differently.

There was an incident, I don't think I ever told you about it, because, frankly, it's pretty embarrassing…

I was getting ready for class, and I mean, getting ready after having just woken up, and I was in the shower, singing to myself and shaving my legs and all that, and then I got out - and you know how the towels were always so far away that we put them right next to us on the toilet so that we wouldn't have to cross the room all wet and naked? How could one ever forget that, right? Anyways. So I was stepping out of the shower and ready to grab the stupid towel, only to find out that I had forgotten to put it there.

So I had to wade across the stupid cold tiles to get it off its hook, and of course he'd suddenly pop up out of thin air right at that very moment to see me in all my naked glory.

Needless to say, I was pretty mortified. Even though of course I knew he was technically dead and that it really didn't matter.

I was prepared to never hear the end of that, to have him comment on my embarrassing little butterfly tattoo that no one besides you even knows about because I always keep it hidden. I was prepared for a slew of cheeky comments or a lame come on.

But I wasn't prepared for his cute - yes, even back then when I still loathed him it was adorably cute - embarrassment. He actually excused himself with an "I'm so sorry," then turned on his heel and stared at the corner till I had wrapped myself up.

I don't remember what I said to him, just that it wasn't exactly nice. (I do feel bad about that now, too, though he assured me there's no need. And yes, that means we actually talked about it, later. Geez, aren't we too drippingly sweet.)"

She drew a smiley there, old style, and it only further outlined her embarrassment at telling Elena about her love story. She shook her head. Maybe she'd have to tear out the pages after all and rewrite everything. Or leave it at a quick Just so you know, while you were sleeping, Enzo St. John and I hooked up, and it was glorious.

"Anyways," she continued, the pen sliding easily across the paper, "it was my first clue to the fact that there's a sweet soul hiding under his dark exterior. And maybe it was the reason why I held onto him later, when the Other Side collapsed and oblivion was pulling at us all.

I could have let go, you know, but I didn't. I couldn't. Because deep down, I knew that he was worth saving. That he had been a victim of circumstances more than anything. And I do believe that insight helped me see the good in Damon too. After… in the prison world.

So, yeah, here we are now, years later, and we're happy together, as happy as you and Damon were - and will be again. I get it now, Elena. I finally understand. There's light even in darkness, good even in bad, and mostly, it's in our hands to shape that.

I just wish we could have all been happy together. You and Damon and Enzo and I. I wish we could have gone on awkward double dates together, could have seen each other dance at our weddings…"

"Are you alright, love?" Enzo had walked up to her so quietly that she startled. She had been deep in thought, tears threatening to fall when she'd heard his voice.

She felt his hand on her shoulder and suddenly grabbed his arm fiercely, turning around to face him. He looked at her with so much love and concern, it made her heart ache.

She stood up abruptly, half throwing herself at him and into his warm embrace.

"Now I am," she whispered, and she clung to him, sighing as he gently stroked her hair, her back.

"Can I do anything?"

"Ach," she made, awkwardly laughing before she pulled away a little to look at him and allow him to wipe away her tears. "Just that stupid diary. I just miss Elena right now. I was trying to tell her about us-"

He cocked his head, smirking, "That bad, huh? One would think you've been writing a tragedy."

She slapped him lightly. "No, it's just… very emotional. I'm…," she sobered, "I've just never been this happy and I wish Elena could have been happy with me…"

He didn't try to say anything, to tell her it was going to be alright, or that Elena would still somehow be happy with her, for her. He did the only right thing and remained completely silent, pulling her into him once more and allowing her to cry.

And she loved him even more for it.

...