You Lost Me

Chapter Thirteen - Mysteries

Damon was desperate as he read the words in the note Bonnie handed him.

Bonnie, I'm sorry I had to compel you but I couldn't take any risks and I know they'd convince you to do a spell to find me. I'll finish what I started but couldn't do. I love you for everything you did and thanks for doing the ring for me, though I may not use it. Don't try and go after me because you won't be able to find me. Tomorrow as the sun rises I won't be anymore. I don't know what to tell to Jenna and Jeremy but I guess my wrecked car will give them a hint. Maybe Damon could just move it to the river and let them think my body was taken by the stream. Reading this just know that I'm so sorry, I didn't meant any of it, I know I can trust you and I'm surely going to miss you because I felt like my time around you was too short lived.

Love, Elena

"How was she able to compel you? Witches aren't supposed to be compelled by vampires" he asked stunned after reading the note at least ten times.

"I don't think Elena knew it that normally witches can't be compelled. But there's one exception. We can let ourselves be compelled. It's quite the ultimate trust bond. Elena told me she was afraid that Katherine would come after me because of her. She said she feared Katherine wanted her dead for good and if I was compelled Katherine couldn't threaten me. I had no idea she was compelling me because she was planning on doing it herself" Bonnie was disappointed at her friend but mainly hurt. Not hurt because Elena went to the great lengths of having her compelled but because she left to die. It was who Elena was. She loved both Salvatore brothers but being a monster wasn't who Elena was. She probably had doubts she'd be able to be on control of that situation and the alternative wasn't a real option. She wouldn't risk killing people and not having any feelings anymore. But something else also got Bonnie's attention. Somehow she felt the last line was about Damon, as she knew he'd read it because he was still around. She couldn't brush it off that Elena referred to the only other person, in addition to her family, that she mentioned in the note and surprisingly it wasn't her boyfriend. She could be wrong though but she was positive Elena has heard most of Damon's words while they briefly talked outside and she was surprised that the male vampire didn't listen when Elena left but he seemed too heartbroken to be on his best mind and senses.

"She left to die; there must be something we can do about it!" Damon said with determination although the thought of Elena burning in the sun made him wince and he never felt so powerless before.

"Can you compel me to do it?" she asked him though she was positive she knew the answer. In that moment it was so clear how much Damon cared about Elena that she was willing to let the person she trusts the least in the world to compel her just so they could save her best friend.

"No, one vampire can't remove other vampire's compulsion. But as she's too young her compulsion is still weak, even more than Stefan's and it'll probably wear down pretty soon. I had to re-compel the nurse Caroline had compelled in the hospital because a few weeks later she was slowly remembering about it and we clearly don't have weeks" he confirmed her thoughts and they both went silent for some moments.

"Don't you know any witch that could do it for you?" the student asked him and his heart dropped knowing that the only one he knew in addition to her he had ripped her heart out.

"No" he answered defeated.

Elena's preferred to die than live as an undead and he couldn't do anything about it. It took him almost two hours to track her at Bonnie's house. The rain didn't help and it didn't look like it was stopping any time soon. Her scent was changing. She was becoming less and less Elena, the human and more and more Elena, the vampire. Her body completed the transition the moment she drank from Carla but her smell didn't vanish into thin air just like that. It was still a mix and unfortunately not something he was already used to.

"I can't do a spell to locate her but I certainly can do one to see if she's alive" Bonnie tried to offer them both some comfort. Maybe Elena would change her mind. She was never suicidal quite the opposite, she handled pretty bravely everything life threw on her way, her relationship with Stefan being the biggest proof of it.

The same thoughts were crossing Damon's head but he wasn't as sober as the witch about everything. Maybe because he was drowning in the middle of Elena's sinking. While her world fell apart he felt like the gravity that was bringing her down and with such guilt over his shoulders he dismissed those thoughts. He's destroyed her life to the point that she preferred to give up and just die and it was driving him insane.

"Let me know when it happens" he told her hopeless and turned to left because he couldn't handle his feelings anymore.

But as he stopped in the middle of the driveway he looked to the dark sky and let the rain drops hit his face, mixing with the tears that were falling down. No matter how lost and shattered he was he'd try to find her. He owed her so much. He owed his sanity so much, so closing his eyes he tried to focus in the faint smell he was yet to get accustomed to.

A couple of hours earlier

"Get out" Stefan finally voiced something. It took him enough time but everything seemed to have sunk in.

"That's not how I expected you to thank me for what I did for you" she stood from the armchair she's been sitting for almost one hour. Damon left on pursue of Elena and Stefan planned to do the same but the older vampire held him in place saying that Damon was much more resourceful to track Elena's newly acquired vampire scent than he was.

Stefan didn't seem to be very reactive and sat on the couch where Elena has been some long minutes before. Katherine sat across him and she didn't say another word. She knew she had to wait him to finally snap. She'd waste saliva talking to him while he was still shocked.

"You killed the woman I love" he jumped from his place to where she was but missed her totally. He was many times slower than her and she didn't need to put a lot of effort to get out of his way.

"The one that cheated on you with your own brother!" Katherine seemed to lose her composure – or patience – as she yelled back at him. Stefan was surprised to see her reaction because in the many times they've been together he's never seen Katherine behaving like a human woman, yelling at him in order to make him understand something. Her tactics were always subtle and unnerving. That was how she played and seeing that now she lost it actually stopped him in his heated reaction.

"That's not her doing, that's Damon. He kissed you once thinking it was her, why wouldn't he do it again?" he bitterly and honestly explained. Stefan and Elena didn't have a realistic relationship. It was more about worship and devotion than about love and passion. Neither thought the other could make any mistakes and betrayal was definitely the last in the list of possibilities. They forgave each other and let things go easily because they wouldn't give up on what they had but neither ever realized that it wasn't about being in love with each other anymore. It was about this epic love. For her it was the vampire who didn't love in many years but still felt like he had to know her. Her physical resemblance to Katherine stopped being a problem a long time ago and she felt worshiped by him. For Stefan it was the second chance at love. Despite always saying he was compelled by Katherine he realized it when Damon's compulsion on Caroline wore down the moment she turned that his memories weren't caused by compulsion. He's loved Katherine back in the day and having her human doppelganger now felt like the chance to live the love he was destined to with the vampire but that for obvious reasons couldn't happen.

"Didn't you listen to a word of what I said? She's not dead because of him! She got in a fatal car accident because she couldn't imagine her life with him gone. Believe what you want to believe Stefan and keep being delusional about it just how you're about not loving me anymore" Katherine has resumed her usual cool and cynical tone and it felt familiar to Stefan. He wasn't used to Katherine being… passionate.

"I love Elena, Katherine. It's time you accept it" he softly and honestly told her and the way he looked to her as he did so almost convinced her.

"You have no idea of the risk I'm going through because of you. I won't give up, Stefan especially now that Elena is a vampire. I'll do everything it takes to have this one thing back" her tone matched his and as she vanished in thin air, Stefan was left behind dumbfounded by her words and her reaction. He thought about following Elena but he knew he couldn't with his weakened senses. Calling Damon to have news seemed his last option but his brother didn't seem too interested in picking up the phone so he decided to try some places. As he run out of the house something else was on his mind other than the woman he couldn't catch she scent. His thoughts were over everything Katherine said but especially seeing for the first time in his life she looking almost human woman.

Carla felt her whole body hurt. Sleeping in hospital chairs could cause that but she didn't care. The important thing was that her grandmother was finally getting better and the doctors couldn't stop repeating to her that what was happening was impossible and it let Carla very uneasy although beyond happy too.

"Good morning, darling" Martha greeted from her bed and the redhead couldn't hold back the tears of seeing her grandmother awake and talking.

"Grandmartha" she threw herself over the elder, too carefully not to hurt her. "You look great" she honestly added appraising the recovering woman.

"Can't say the same about you, dear. You didn't need to sleep in that awful chair. How is everything?"

"Everything is great. I was really worried about you, ma, but now that you're getting better I'm so happy" the young woman had a few tears in her eyes but she didn't care.

"Let's hope I'm released to go home soon"

"I'm betting you're" her granddaughter offered confidently.

"But seriously, darling, you look really tired and I can see you grimacing in pain. Why don't you go home and take a long shower and come back for us to have lunch together? You need to live your life, you're so young and beautiful to be stuck in a hospital the whole day" the woman offered sweetly and Carla kissed her in the cheek.

"I'll do that. What do you want to eat today?"

"Anything my lovely granddaughter feels up to cook. I love your cooking"

"Okay, then. I'll be back around noon, okay?" the graduate offered and hugging her grandmother once more she left the room.

She was passing in front of the nurse station when she nodded her head to the nurse but as soon as she resumed looking ahead of her an idea popped in my mind. She needed to put her mind at ease no matter how ridiculous this whole thing looked.

"Hey, Rose, how are you?" she asked nicely and to the nurse who answered with matching courtesy.

"Do you know my boyfriend? Damon? He came with me the other day to let the doctors know I was traveling" Carla asked hoping the nurse would remember. Thankfully Damon was someone hard to forget with the amazing looks and she just hoped she was lucky enough to have the nurse working in the previous day too.

"Of course I do, such a nice and polite young man" the small woman winked to Carla playfully adding "Did I mention gorgeous?"

"Thanks, were you working yesterday when grandmother started to answer to the treatment?" the redhead didn't want to make the question bluntly without knowing the woman sitting in front of her could actually be useful.

"I had left a couple of hours earlier, but I couldn't be happier for you and Martha. Let's hope it goes away forever" the older woman honestly offered to the graduate who smiled politely but she could also see the expectation in the woman's eyes to know why Carla was asking odd questions like that.

"Right. Damon told me he'd come here yesterday before he had to travel and as I couldn't talk to him ever since I'm not sure if he came after or before grandma got better"

"He came earlier; I was leaving my shift when I saw him talking to Amelia. He talked to her for a couple of minutes and headed to your grandmother's room. He seemed all worried and concerned. It was cute" the nurse explained and Carla did her best to keep her composure and do not show how accelerated her heart was in her chest.

"I thought it was odd for him to close the blinds but I guess I get it. Men don't like the whole world to see their vulnerability. Maybe he cried and didn't want us to see it"

"He closed the blinds?" the redhead asked shocked and she felt almost dizzy.

"Cute, isn't? You hit the jackpot with that one Carla. Good looking, a gentleman, caring and sensitive. If I were you I'd put a ring on his finger" the woman chuckled but not for one moment she realized how the girl in front of her was pale and not surprised but stunned.

"Yeah, I better do that. Have a nice day, Rose" she turned around and left the hospital in a rush.

It was stupid and insane. She was twenty-four for God's sake! She couldn't believe in such things like children fairytales – maybe not exactly fairytales but still.

She couldn't breathe as she reached the doors of the hospital and moving to one of the benches outside she sat bringing her hands to her heart. She couldn't sleep at night and she didn't have her computer in the hospital to make any research. It was crazy and she's always been a very rational woman, she wouldn't change now but it what other explanation was left? The last time she went to a church was with her grandmother when she was still a child and although Martha was a fervent Christian, Carla still didn't believe in any of that. But she was convinced something supernatural healed her mother. God or Damon, she wasn't sure as Elena's words kept resonating in her head.

"Yeah, your miracle is definitely called Damon"

"That's because he's a vampire, moron and his blood has healing properties and giving it to Mrs. Flowers surely can make things that medicine would call miracle"

AN: hi there, guys.

This show is too great for words. I loved tonight's episode though I loved even more next episode's promo. Three weeks, I'll need help with that.

anyway, with my fic. First, this Rose is just a nurse, not the vampire Rose from the show (though I'm loving her). And Carla remembers. Damon had no idea of what Carla and Elena have been talking and he just compelled her to forget the attack. He even stressed that she'd remember their conversation but then she'd say bye and go to her grandmother's room. So his secret is out... let's see where this will get.

Elena, much like in the show, prefers to sacrifice herself (I love it when I see something that seems reliable and on character with the show). She could kill innocent people out of lack of control just like Caroline did and she doesn't want it. So before thinking she's always the all-dramatic-girl, let's see her side of things.

Stefan and Katherine... I'm certainly bringing a lot of the current storyline in the show to this story, so expect to listen about moonstone and stuff at some point.

Bonnie took a leap of faith offering herself to be compelled by Damon and she may be right about her interpretation of Elena's words.

And it leaves us with Damon. Poor guy, it keeps getting just worse and worse but don't worry I hit the bottom now so things can only go up now ;)

Next: Jeremy, Damon, Caroline and of course, Elena ;)

I'll lack DE scenes for awhile but I'll make it up for you when they finally see each other again.

Thanks a lot to shadylady21, bluestriker666, BMCullen, tsukivamp, Purple-Peebles, Vampgirl144, MsMaeve18, WhiteLine-Turned-HurricaneGirl, niadk, damvampsal21, xLoveRyanx, kat, Alottalove, lizzie, Avecia for the reviews and especially mayghaen17 who started reading this story now and still reviewed each one of the chapters. I made me really happy.

I'll talk to you pretty soon.

Babi