Elena woke up with a knot around her stomach. She was overwhelmed by an unsettling sensation and she couldn't distinguish whether it was fear, anxiety or anticipation. This was the day they had dreaded for years. She would have to casually face Damon and his girlfriend at the presence of her entire family and especially her ignorant husband.
Elena knew that it would take all her strength to hide her emotions and to not demonstrate her dismay especially if the worst case scenario took place. What if Stefan was right about Damon's intention? What if the family dinner was Damon's chance to announce his upcoming wedding?
Elena had tons of things to do, in order to get the house ready for the big family reunion that her and her husband had planned. It was the perfect opportunity as her brother Jeremy and her best friend Bonnie Bennett had just returned from their trip to Europe. Bonnie had been dreaming of travelling since she was a little girl and Jeremy as a young artist needed to gain more experience to advance his creations. Elena missed them terribly but she was glad that they were getting to fulfill their goals and live in their own terms. But damn, Elena needed her best friend's support now more than ever.
Bonnie had offered to help with the preparations, giving them time to catch up after such a long departure. Once she finally arrived, Elena couldn't contain her enthusiasm over meeting her best friend and rushed to hug her. Bonnie's expressions were just as amiable. It was no surprise that it didn't take long for the two friends to finish all the tasks for the preparation of the dinner as they had always made a great team once set on something. Fortunately for Elena, this left them plenty of time to talk about the issue that tormented her these days.
"...Her name's Rose, she is gorgeous and Stefan kept talking about how happy they are together and how Damon will probably settle down with her" Elena kept ranting in an incessant monologue that left Bonie no room for comments. "I mean isn't this the most ridiculous thing you've ever heard? It must be classic Stefan reading more into things..."
Bonnie watched over her friend, worried of the turn this confession had taken. Elena's tone was now pleading, desperately seeking for some kind of reassurance that her fears were unfounded and Bonnie couldn't bear to see her friend like that. A deep sense of pitty overwhelmed her as she realised that her friend had never let go of Damon and the prospect of them finding their way back to each other.
"Elena, honey...", Bonnie called out to Elena tenderly, as if she was trying to soften the blow of what she was about to say, "we knew that Damon would find someone eventually, didn't we? We can't know if that Rose will be the one, but you need to accept that there will be one someday.."
"Of course, Bonnie, I'm not as naive to expect that Damon will die alone, but...", Elena couldn't find the words to continue, mainly because the realisation of what Bonnie had just said struck her. "Am I selfish Bonnie? I have everything and yet I want, I need Damon to stay stagnant".
A knock on the door interrupted Bonnie's response. Lily Salvatore, Elena's mother in law, friendly and lively as always, demanded their attention and deprived them of any opportunity to continue their conversation.
The room was finally ready to host their family and friends and Elena took a moment to appreciate the fruits of their work. The table was beautifully decorated, covered in an elegant white tablecloth, with compositions of red and white roses standing prominently. The candles attributed an even more romantic touch to the dinner and the overall feeling of the decor was cleverly summed by Lily's comment "Who are we seducing today?".
"Yeah, you outdid yourself today Elena! Never in a million years would I expect that you of all people would have taken time to order flowers. Has Caroline taken over your body? And where is Caroline by the way?", Bonnie expressed her amazement over Elena's feat, even though she could suspect what caused her friend's change of attitude.
"I haven't seen much of her myself lately", Elena replied, " Stefan and Caroline are working on a mysterious new project these days, apparently most of the work has fallen on her hands".
More small talk ensued between the three women until the guests started arriving. Aunt Jenna and Alaric were the first to honour their little meeting, followed by Stefan and Caroline, Guissepe Salvatore and Jeremy along with their childhood friends Matt Donovan and Tyler Lockwood. Only two people were missing from their little gathering and Elena didn't know whether to feel blessed or dissapointed.
A knock on the door made it evident to Elena that the moment she was dreading would soon be coming.
"Oh it must be Damon!" Stefan exclaimed, as he rushed towards the door to welcome his brother and his girlfriend. Stefan's eagerness bought Elena some time to collect herself.
The first person that entered the room was Damon, holding a box of pastries that he quickly passed onto Stefan. His colourful tie and well thought outfit caught Elena's attention as it was very far from the typical Damon styling. Damon's preference to anything plain and black had been the subject of many fights between Damon and his mother over the years.
"You don't even try to look presentable", Lily reproached, frustrated with her son's stubborness. "All these guests, that honoured our gathering, could be potential donors. The hard work that your father is doing , depends on the success of this event and the least we could do to attribute to this cause is to look our best".
Elena felt extremely uncomfortable witnessing their fight. She had known Stefan's family for a month and it became evident from the start that Damon and Lily had a complicated relationship. Lily adored her son, but they were too similar in their intensity of character, which caused inevitable friction between them. The only times they stood on a united front were whenever an outsider was naive enough to challenge one of the two.
"I could bring you ten donors by midnight, even if I wore sweatpants.", Damon showed his irritation at his mother's narrow-mindedness.
"I sincerely doubt that", Lily exclaimed.
"Wanna bet?", Damon dared his mother, obstinate as always, determined to prove her wrong.
"You have a deal!", Lily caved into Damon's childish game, her own temperament making it hard to resist. " But Elena will escort you, to make sure that you don't cheat. You can't flirt or behave in any way that would be indecent for this event".
Elena was found yet another time in the middle of a Salvatore fight. Her boyfriend's absence in a work trip didn't stop Lily from inviting her in the gala. Her future mother in law wasn't shy in showing her fondness of Elena even that early in their acquaintance. Lily's good will wasn't enough to overcome Elena's uneasiness in such a new and unpredictable environment, which was probably what urged Lily to enlist Damon in her attempts to make her guest feel comfortable. Despite their quarrels, Lily knew that Damon had a natural gift in relaxing people, an ability she would shamelessly use whenever it was needed. It was another lesson Elena would get to learn over the years; Lily's motivations are always much deeper than they seem, as her perception is much more advanced than people give her credit for.
"Come on, Elena, let's charm the room!", Damon invited her, extending his arm towards her in order to lead her towards their future victims.
The idea of spending the night with Damon made her nervous. The way his gaze fell on her, as if he could see right through her, inspecting her every move and calling her out on every feeling had become unsettling to her. He was the only person in her life, that made her feel that she couldn't hide anything from, however hard she tried. In the few times that they'd encountered each other ever since Stefan introduced them, Damon had managed to get past her defenses and influence her in manners she couldn't afford to be affected.
As far as Elena was concerned Damon was far from being unpresentable as Lily pointed out earlier. He had just denied to conform to the red and gold dresscode that Lily had demanded from their guests. His black suit and black shirt along with his impressively well-sculpted face, gave off Damon a regal air and could charm even the most demanding woman in the room. His outfit made him stand out and underlined his cynical personality and his abhorrence towards the pretence that overflowed these kind of events.
"What's our first target?", Elena inquired, deciding to play along.
Damon leaned in on her ear and whispered conspicuously. "See over there, the old lady with the red hat?" , Damon pointed discreetly towards the woman,"That's Mrs White, she has tons of money to spare and is extremely gullible". The proximity along with the scent of his cologne almost distracted Elena from her role as the referree of the bet and left her struggling to sustain her countenance.
"Your mother said you can't cheat", Elena disputed, once she concertrated on her task.
"My mother said I can't flirt or be indecent. She never said I can't lie...", Damon winked and put his arm protectively around Elena's waist. Without further conversation, they headed towards the old woman. Damon wore his most alluring smile as he greeted Mrs White, who turned out to be as naive as promised.
"Mrs White, this is my fiance, Elena Gilbert", Damon announced, stunning Elena and freezing her on her tracks.
"Guys, this is Rose, the future Mrs Salvatore", Damon announced as soon as Rose entered the room and looked eagerly around to scan his family's reactions. He received heartfelt wishes and congratulations from everyone but the one whose gaze he was trying to avoid at all costs. Once their eyes finally met, Elena knew and searched for any opportunity to share her discovery with Bonnie.
So what did you think of this chapter? Feel free to comment :)