Disclaimer: This story is based on characters created by L.J. Smith, as portrayed in the TV series created by Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec. All rights to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.

Author's Note: I just wanted to say thank you for all the kind reviews. I am terrible at replying to them, but I read and appreciate each and every one. : )

ELENA'S ESCAPE

~ Reunion ~

Elena did her best to avoid Damon the following week, which was not an easy task given that she worked with him. Fortunately for her, Damon clearly thought he had done something wrong, that he had pushed her too far and he tried to give her space. Elena felt relieved at the fact that he didn't push her, but she also felt guilty.

"So what's going on with you and Damon?" Lexi asked as they were finishing their shift at the Grill on Monday night. Elena usually only worked at the college on Mondays, but one of the waitresses called in sick and Elena agreed to take the afternoon shift.

"What do you mean?"

"That weekend at Caroline's, he couldn't wait to see you and you definitely seemed to enjoy his attention. This past week, he's only been at the bar when you haven't been working. Did something happen?"

Elena debated whether she should confide in Lexi. Sure, she wasn't as gossipy as Caroline – who remarkably seemed to have toned down her curious streak since last weekend – but Elena couldn't be sure. Still, she needed to talk to someone who knew Damon.

"Promise you won't tell anyone?"

"Of course."

"Well, we… I… we sorta kissed."

"Sorta?"

"Ok, we really kissed, and it got… kinda intense. Too intense. It's just too soon, you know? I don't even know him that well and I'm not the type of girl to rush into things. And now… I've been avoiding him, because I'm ashamed, and he's been keeping his distance, too."

"He's giving you space."

"Yeah. Only… maybe he's over me. I mean, I can't expect him to wait around for me to be ready, you know."

"Trust me – he's far from over you. You haven't seen him this past week. He's hurting. He probably thinks he did something wrong and he's beating himself up about it. You should just be honest with him. Tell him why you've been avoiding him and maybe you guys can work something out. If not, at least you'll have closure."

Elena thanked Lexi for the advice and headed back to the boarding house with a mission: tell Damon the truth. Starting with her real name.

As Elena entered the boarding house, she caught a whiff of something delicious. She followed the alluring scent to the kitchen, where Damon stood by the stove, his back turned, and was stirring a sauce of some kind.

"That smells delicious," Elena said with genuine appreciation.

Damon turned slightly, looking over his shoulder. "Wanna help?" he smiled.

"Sure, but I'm a lousy cook," Elena warned him, walking up to the sink to wash her hands.

"That only leaves room for improvement," Damon shrugged and smiled.

"So what's the occasion?" Elena said as she walked up to the stove.

"My buddy Ric is bringing his new girlfriend to Mystic Falls. They've only been dating for a few weeks, but apparently it's a 'whirlwind romance'", he air-quoted dramatically.

Elena's laugh got stuck in her throat. For a brief moment she had managed to push the thought of the visitors from LA from her mind. She had been so preoccupied with thoughts of Damon that she forgot they were coming tonight. She had to get out of here. The small chance they might know her was too big a risk. Kyle could never learn of her whereabouts.

"I should go," Elena said abruptly.

"What? Why?"

"I… forgot… I…"

"Hey, we're back!" Zach called out, startling Elena.

There was no escape. She was trapped in the kitchen. When a sandy-haired, rugged-looking man entered, though, Elena let out a sigh of relief. She had never seen him before.

He and Damon heartily embraced and when they pulled apart, Damon gestured to Elena. "Kat, I want you to meet Ric, my old college buddy."

"Nice to meet you," Elena said politely, extending her hand.

"This is Kat?" he said with a glance at Damon as he shook her hand. "Your description didn't do her justice, man."

Elena frowned, puzzled. Had Damon been talking about her?

"I'm sorry, it's just… never mind. Nice to meet you, Kat," Ric smiled.

"So where's this girl of yours, Ric? You know, the one you wouldn't shut up about?" Damon asked.

"Oh, sorry, she got talking to Zach, she's in the parlor."

"Well, we better rescue her, then. Let's hope he didn't start in on the 19th century bookcases…" Damon joked. "You coming, Kat?" he turned to her as they were heading out of the kitchen.

Elena mulled it over. Since she didn't know Ric, why would she know his girlfriend? "Yeah, ok."

As they entered the parlor, they could see Zach talking to a strawberry blonde, their backs turned. He was gesturing to a number of paintings and the blonde was nodding politely.

"Ric should have warned you about Zach," Damon said as he and Ric entered the parlor. "He seems to be the quiet type, but when you get him started he'll talk your ear off."

The woman turned around at the sound of Damon's voice and as he kissed her hand, she smiled at him. Then her eyes found Elena, hovering in the doorway, and her hand flew to her mouth.

Damon frowned at the shocked expression on their guest's face and followed her gaze over to Elena, who looked pale as a ghost. "Uh… do you two… know each other?"

The woman caught herself and cleared her throat. "I'm sorry, I just… your friend looks a lot like an old school friend of mine. I'm sorry, how rude of me. I'm Jenna," the blonde said politely to Damon and Elena, who remained in the doorway. "Nice to meet you…?"

"Damon. This is our boarder, Kat," he gestured to Elena, who had now stepped into the parlor. The women shook hands. "If you'll excuse me, I have to check on dinner," Damon said and with a final hesitant glance, left them.

Ric and Zach had engaged in a vivid conversation on whether or not carving was the preferred method when crafting bookcases in the 19th century.

"Jenna, would you like to see the rest of the house?" Elena said, loud enough for the men to overhear. However, they were engulfed in their debate and took no notice as the two women disappeared.

As soon as they were safe upstairs, and out of earshot, the women embraced, tears streaming. "I can't believe you're here! I never thought I'd see you again!" Jenna exclaimed, trying to keep her voice down.

"Me neither. I've missed you so much!"

"We have so much to talk about. Do you live here?"

"Come on, I'll show you my room," Elena said and took Jenna by the hand.

"Wow, it's gorgeous," Jenna said as she took in the room. "So…"

"Peaceful?" Elena suggested. "Yeah, I love it."

"So tell me everything. How'd you end up here?" Jenna said, jumping onto the bed and crossing her legs.

"I got off the bus. When it pulled into this little town I decided to try it. I got a job and a place to stay all in the span of one day. I even got a second job and a bike the day after that."

"A bike?"

"Yeah, I can't tell you how much I love the feeling of being free to go wherever, whenever. And Damon's teaching me how to drive."

"Damon? The blue-eyed, drop dead gorgeous man downstairs? Ric's best friend? The guy who's cooking for us?" Jenna almost shrieked.

"Sounds like an accurate description."

"Why is he giving you driving lessons?"

"Because I don't know how to drive?"

"I know Mystic Falls is a small town, but surely they have driving instructors?"

"He offered, ok?"

"Oh. Tell me… what else has he offered?"

"Jenna!" Elena punched her aunt's arm.

"I'm just saying… he's pretty dreamy."

"Yeah, 'dream' being the operative word. I'm living in a fantasy, Jenna. He doesn't even know my real name. How can I have an honest relationship without honesty?"

"Did you consider telling him the truth?"

"I did. Part of it, anyways. I told him about Kyle."

"Wow… that's big, Elena."

"I know."

"How'd he react?"

"He didn't say much. He just listened and said he was sorry. I told him I didn't want to be treated differently, and he's honored that."

"Are you falling for him?"

"Yeah… I guess I am… but it doesn't matter. He deserves honesty, and until I can give him that…" Elena shook her head. "Forget about it. I wanna know how you met Ric," Elena winked at Jenna.

"Well, I was at the bar with one of my girlfriends, and he was sitting at the bar. I didn't really pay much attention to him at first. Then Kyle showed up, drunk as a skunk, and he started rambling about how I never respected his marriage to you and that he couldn't stand the sight of me. Ric heard him and stepped in. He politely suggested that Kyle go visit another establishment far, far away. Kyle took a swing at him, but Ric sidestepped him and he stumbled and fell. The bouncers carried him outside."

Elena was shocked at Jenna's account of the events, but a part of her was happy hearing of Kyle's demise. "So… how much did you tell Ric?"

"The basics. That Kyle was married to my niece, who recently drowned, and that we never got along."

"Thank you, Jenna. For not telling him everything. I'm sorry you have to lie to protect me."

"It's a small price to pay to know that you'll be safe. But Elena… you got away. You have a chance at a real life. You could be honest with Damon, and I believe I can trust Ric. It's your decision, sweetie."

"Did you see Kyle again after that night?"

"No. I haven't heard from him. But from what he said at the bar, I have every reason to think he believes you drowned."

"So I'm free? He's not coming for me?"

"He wouldn't even know where to start looking if he wanted to."

"And you're sure Ric won't say a word to anyone in LA?"

"Positive."

Elena took a deep breath. "Ok. I'll tell him. I'll tell him everything and hope he'll forgive me."

"Of course he'll forgive you, sweetie! You were scared. No-one could blame you for being careful."

"How long are you staying?"

"All week. Ric told me about this Masquerade Ball this town throws every year, and Damon got us invited."

"Great. Oh, we should probably go downstairs before we're missed," Elena said, climbing off the bed.

"Ok, let's go. And Elena?"

"Yeah?"

"Love the hair."

"Thanks, Jenna," Elena smiled and the two women made their way downstairs.

"Hey, perfect timing," Damon said as they entered the kitchen, "dinner's ready."

They had a nice dinner where Ric told stories about Damon in college, Zach told stories of when he himself went to college, and Jenna and Elena listened with great interest and bombarded the men with questions to distract from the fact that neither of them wanted to talk about their lives.

As the night came to an end, everyone thanked Damon for the delicious meal and Zach insisted that he'd take care of the dishes. Ric and Jenna settled into their room and Damon and Elena disappeared into their separate bedchambers.

Elena washed her face and looked at herself in the mirror, taking several steadying breaths in an attempt to calm herself and get rid of the butterflies the size of bats in her stomach. She had to do this tonight, before she lost her nerve and talked herself out of it again.

Elena tiptoed down the hallway until she reached Damon's room. She took another steadying breath before knocking quietly. No response. She knocked again, louder this time. Still nothing. Maybe he didn't want to see her. Elena sighed and turned away just when the door opened.

"Kat?"

Elena spun around. "Damon. Hi. I was wondering… could I talk to you for a minute?"

"Uh… sure, come on in." He held the door open for her and closed it behind them. "What's up?"

"I… there are some things you should know… about me. And once I've told you everything I need to say, you might not want to talk to me again."

"Ok…"

Elena walked over to the bed and sat down on the edge. There were no chairs in the room, and she didn't trust her legs to carry her much longer. "Will you sit down?" she asked softly.

Damon complied, taking a seat beside her. Elena turned slightly, facing him. "My name isn't Katherine Pierce. It's Elena Gilbert. Everything I told you about my husband is true, up until the part where I left. My family didn't die in a fire. Kyle wouldn't let me go, and I was terrified. My aunt helped me plan my escape. I took swimming lessons without him knowing, my aunt helped me get a fake ID and one night we went out sailing when the weather suddenly changed. I saw my chance, and I took it. I jumped overboard and I let him think that I drowned. I swam to my aunt's house, got a change of clothing and the bag she had prepared for me, and I hopped on the first bus out of LA. My parents and my younger brother died in a car crash while I was in Paris with Kyle. I only had my aunt, and Kyle did his best to keep me from seeing her. I'm sorry I lied to you, to everyone. I couldn't risk Kyle finding out that I didn't drown. He would come after me and he would kill me. I understand if you never want to see me again. I'll leave. I'll get on the first bus out of here and you'll never have to talk to me again." Tears spilled onto her cheeks.

"Elena," Damon said softly, wiping her tears with his thumbs, cradling her face. "It suits you. It means light, you know. I have never met a woman with so much light inside. I'm so sorry for everything you've had to go through to get here, but I'm so grateful you walked into my life. I don't ever want you to leave."

"Damon…" Elena breathed. "You don't hate me for lying to you?"

"How could I ever?" he said softly, kissing her cheeks where the saltiness of her tears still lingered.

"Wait," she breathed, putting a finger to his lips. "There's something else I have to tell you."

Damon nodded, waiting for her to continue.

"Ric's new girlfriend… Jenna's my aunt."

"That's it?"

"No. I also wanted to tell you… I think I'm falling in love with you."

"I think… I can live with that," he smirked, earning himself a shove on the elbow. They were both smiling broadly, but after a little while of gazing into each other's eyes, Damon's face became serious, vulnerable. "Will you stay with me tonight?"

"Is it ok if you just hold me?" Elena said softly.

"That would be perfect," Damon said, stroking her face.

"She's in some backwater town in Virginia, called Mystic Falls," the voice on the telephone said.

"You're sure?"

"Yeah. That lowlife was right, following the aunt led me straight to her."

"Bring her to me."

"Yes, sir."

Kyle hung up the phone with a cruel smile on his lips. After he was kicked out of the bar where he found Jenna, Logan Fell had approached him, saying he had information that might interest him. If he was willing to pay for it, of course. With the name on the fake ID and the confirmation that Jenna Sommers had helped her niece escape, Kyle found himself the best P.I. money could buy. Mr. Smith wasn't only a talented investigator; he was an efficient assassin, as well. He had taken care of Logan Fell and he would see to it that neither Jenna Sommers nor Alaric Saltzman interfered with reuniting Kyle with his beloved wife. Yes, today was turning out to be a very good day.

Author's Note: Zach may be a little out of character in this story, but to be honest, we didn't get to see nearly enough of him in the show, so who really knows if he secretly had an obsession with furniture? : )