Goodbye My Almost Lover: Chapter 2
The way to the Salvatore boarding house was a long stretch of gravel road almost on the outskirts of the town, seemingly sheltered by the oak and maple trees of the Mystic Falls woods. The mansion itself stood strong and silent at the end of the path, with the doors locked and windows hidden behind heavy velvet curtains. Impenetrable to either light or outside intruders, this grand structure seemed to demand privacy and secrecy, a quality which no doubt only added to its irresistible atmosphere of mystery. In its eternal slumber, as if enchanted by some sort of spell, the boarding house never failed to steal the breath of those passing nearby. However, as the wheels of her car sped faster and faster towards the building, its majestic beauty was completely lost on Elena.
As she pulled into the driveway of the boarding house, she could not help but hope against all odds that she was not too late. She found herself praying that she has gotten there in time to see Damon before he left, in time to stop him from walking out of her life forever. She was sure that once she talked to him she could make him see how absurd and completely unnecessary his intention of leaving was. She wanted, no, she needed him to understand that nothing good would come out of his doing so. No matter what he thought, it would not keep her safe. After all, how could she be safe if he wasn't there to protect her?
Elena briefly recalled Damon's assurance of her being safe because Stefan would always be there for her. She didn't doubt Stefan. Really, she didn't. She knew that he would risk his life to save hers any day, but somehow she found no comfort in knowing any of this. Stefan wasn't as strong as his brother, as determined as his brother, or nearly as loyal as his brother. He wasn't Damon.
Opening the door to the mansion, Elena hoped that she would not run into Stefan because knowing that they have not made any plans to spend the day together he would without a doubt ask her why she was there. And no matter how hard she tried to think of one, Elena did not have an explanation. All she knew was that she needed to see Damon. To make sure that he would stay in Mystic Falls.
Stepping foot into the house, Elena hoped to see Damon in his usual habit of lounging in the living room, loud music blaring from the speakers, drink in hand. Much to her disappointment the room was immersed in complete silence, no sign of the eldest Salvatore anywhere. And yet despite his obvious absence, Elena refused to admit that that he was already gone. Hurriedly she made her way up the stairs and towards his room, pausing in front of the door for a moment.
"-Please", she prayed desperately, "Please let him be in there"
Seeing Damon's room was not what Elena expected. Looking around the place, she momentarily forgot her purpose of being there in the first place. Unlike the product of her imagination, it was open and bright, with beams of light coming through large, glass windows. In contrast to his brother, Damon kept his room clutter free and organized. In some bizarre way, Elena found herself thinking that the room described Damon perfectly. She could picture herself spending a lot of her time here. Despite her best efforts, Elena could not help but fall in love with it.
But no matter how perfect the room was, it was missing one important thing. Damon. He was nowhere to be seen. In a desperate attempt to hold on to some last shred of hope that he has not left after all, Elena began rummaging through his drawers and closets. They were empty.
Damon was really gone. This she could deny no longer. The only thing left of him was a black, silk shirt lying discarded at the bottom of the closet.
As picked the shirt of the ground and hugged it close to her body, Elena felt her knees give out beneath her as she tumbled to the ground. She felt as if her heart had been stabbed a million times and now it was slowly and painfully bleeding out in her chest. Damon was gone. These words rang in her head over and over again, consuming Elena in on overwhelming ocean of loss and despair. And it wasn't until she felt a hand on her shoulder that she realized that she had been crying.
The moment she felt the touch of a man's hand come in contact with her skin, a feeling of warmth spread over her. She could not resist the temptation of believing that Damon has changed his mind and decided to stay after all. The mere thought of having him close to her again, brought a smile to her face.
But her joy was short lived. When she turned around it wasn't Damon's face that was looking down on her. It was Stefan's. The disappointment was enough to break her already aching heart.
Somewhere in the distance heard Stefan's worried voice calling her name and asking her what was wrong. And as she broke down in tears once more, only two words escaped her lips. "He's gone".
A/N: Second chapter of the story is up. What do you think?
