A/N: I was 'awwing' Damon SO much in this chapter. Danny does have a sensitive side, It's one of the reasons why I love him so much. :'). If there's any guy who can roleplay Damon, It's him and without him this story would be 'blah' . We're so thankful for your reviews; reviews and subscribers - you ARE the shiz. ^^ (Apologies about this chapter being kinda' jumpy; but we didn't want it to get boring. :P You know how much we' love a review? ;)

Chapter Seventeen: Romeo Luciano Salvatore.

**8 months full of Elena's hormonal mood swings later**

Damon came up the stairs and into his room, where Elena was lying in bed. Stefan was out of town, because of their surprise. He had gone to do something him and Damon planned, but they couldn't let Elena in on the plan just yet. He sat down at the edge of the bed and spoke.

"Elena, love. What's the matter?" He asked his voice soft.

Elena sighed, leaning further into Damon's bed and closing her eyes as she inhaled his scent. She turned away from the door and placed a hand under the covers and on top of the bump that had dominated her. She was so unattractive right now; she didn't even want to go out. Damon's voice broke the silence and she frowned.

"I'm an ugly, big, unattractive mess Damon. You don't have to pretend to find me attractive, I get that you don't," she sighed, not even looking at him.

Damon laughed.

"You have such a good sense of humour, when you're pregnant." He climbed further onto the bed, before leaning in to kiss her, while he placed his hand onto her bump. "Hey, I would be looking bumpy too if I had Romeo inside me." He grinned, before kissing her again and then just sitting beside her. "Stefan should be back in a day, probably." He informed her, before taking her hand in his hands, and lifting it up to his lips, before placing a kiss on the palm of her hand.

Elena's frown deepened as she heard his comment and she let out a harsh breath of air before shaking her head. She let him kiss her, but didn't kiss him back; she didn't feel like kissing; not when she didn't feel the slightest bit sexy. Elena managed to smile as he mentioned Romeo by name... She loved that little guy inside of her, but hated how he had her feel about herself. Elena nodded before speaking.

"I know.. But... Romeo's going to want to know who his daddy is.. And we don't even know," she sighed.

"What does it matter who his father is? Both I and Stefan will take care of him. I'm sure Romeo will love having one sexy, sarcastic dad, and another well... boring, reasonable dad. Keeps it balanced, you could say." He grinned and just held her hand.

He wondered if Stefan will be back before the next day. As freaky as that would sound 9 months ago, he missed his little brother, and mocking him and all. It kept him entertained most of the time.

Elena looked at him now, and she knew how tired she looked. And really? She was so, so tired. She nodded softly and held his hand tightly; she truly loved Damon, and Stefan. And honestly, she would never in a million years have imagined this. She couldn't help but laugh at Damon's analysis of both him and his brother.

"You... Are beautiful," and then Elena didn't care that she was pregnant, or about anything else, just about him.

Elena leant over and caught his face, kissing him deeply.

Damon smiled hearing her statement, before kissing her back with as much passion as he could put into a single kiss. His hand moved to her cheek, and he smiled against her lips. He was happy. Really and truly happy, even though if someone about a year ago had foretold him his future, he would have laughed at them and sent them to a mental hospital for special treatment. Yet, here he was with everything played out the way it was played out. It was perfect, in a weird fucked up way.

Damon was kissing her, really kissing her. He didn't find her ugly, or repulsive; he actually wanted her and he loved her. Elena's eyes snapped to a close and she kissed him with as much passion as he seemed to be filled with. Her hands ran into his hair and she pulled him on top of her. Kissing him roughly like this and even sex didn't hurt Romeo; in fact, it helped keep the baby healthy. Her lips parted and she trailed her tongue over his lips. They hadn't done this in ages.

**Exactly one month later**

Damon was kissing her. Oh, he'd never get bored of this. Stefan was out, getting some more vervain. Last month, he came back just like they planned with a cot, and stuff for the baby. He said it took him longer than planned because he decided to visit Italy to shop for some clothes for the baby, which resulted in him buying a shirt that had the Italian flag on it and said Romeo. It was cute, but Damon would never use such a word and instead mocked Stefan. Of course, that didn't change. Anyways, back to reality and his lips on Elena's.

Elena's lips moved fast against his, sure she was nine months pregnant and probably a unattractive as any person could be in their lifetime, but Damon really didn't seem to care. Her hands ran down his back and around to his front. They snaked up his shirt as she pulled him closer, her eyes shut tightly. And then, when she was really getting into it... She felt them. And it wasn't a kick. It was... Elena pulled away from Damon and clutched her stomach. She stared wide-eyed.

"Damon. I.. Oh my gos-. I'm having contractions," she gasped, slightly in pain, but joyful nether the less.

Damon looked at her with wide eyes. For about a minute, he didn't understand the meaning of her words, but then it struck him like a lightning and he started panicking.

"Okay. Don't panic. Breathe. "He got off the bed, and quickly picked her up, and with that he was out the door. "Elena, you can do it, love." In fact, he was probably more panicked than Elena herself.

He put her down in the passenger's seat, and almost jumped into the car himself, before setting off for the hospital at an irrational speed.

Elena nodded, but she was shaking. Even in his arms she was shaking so hard. It'd just dawned on her.. She was about to have baby. Mere minutes later, another contraction swept across her body like an electric shot, and she jolted, wincing and holding her stomach. she shook her head from side to side, she had no idea where she was right now.

"I can't do this, Damon.. I.. I can't," she said over and over again "Maybe the baby's not coming... Let's go home Damon.. It'll calm do-" Elena held her stomach and shut her eyes.

He took her hand, while the other one remained on the steering wheel.

"Of course you can, love. Breathe. Take a deep breath." He kept saying, and he let out a sigh of relief, as he pulled over at the hospital.

Within a minute, he was running in through the door, with Elena in his arms. He almost screamed at the receptionist but she seemed to be used to men panicking like that. But Damon didn't have time to stop to think about it.

**Much, MUCH Later**

"Come on, Elena.. One more push and he'll be out.. Come on, you can do it do it for..." The midwife glanced over to Damon and smiled before looking back to Elena. "Do it for your boyfriend over there and for that little guy inside of you," she encouraged, jerking her head for Damon to squeeze her hand and urge her on.

Elena swallowed hard and nodded. She'd been doing this for hours now and she was determined to get Romeo out safely if it was the last thing she'd do. And with a very tight squeeze of her hand on Damon's she pushed one last time. The midwife instantly rushed to the bottom of the bed, and pulled Damon with her.

"Would you like to cut the cord?"

Damon was squeezing Elena's hand. No. Strike that. Elena was squeezing Damon's hand. But he didn't care, in fact, he barely felt it, but a human would have his bones crunched by Elena's grip. When he heard the midwife, he subconsciously moved to where she was. Cut the cord? He opened his mouth but couldn't say anything, so he just nodded. In all his years of life, he'd never experienced anything like that, and he made a mental note to curse Stefan for not being there, for if he was maybe Damon would have been in a better mental condition.

The midwife sighed, but smiled at Damon, he seemed to her like he really loved the Elena girl he had brought in today, and it seemed as though he'd never done anything like this before. She passed him the scissors and pointed where he should cut.

"Don't be scared of hurting her, or the baby, they'll both be fine," the red-head assured him.

Meanwhile at the other head of the bed, Elena was still panting. Her head was resting upon the pre plumped pillow and she exhaled deeply. Stefan would blame himself forever for missing Romeo's birth. It was.. Sort of sad, really.

Damon listened to the midwife, and concentrated in cutting the cord in the exact spot the midwife pointed to. When he was done, he put the scissors away, as far away from him as possible, before grabbing Elena's hand again. He still was short for words, but he figured his muscles weren't as tensed anymore, and he could move more easily. God, his son was being born. Damon and Stefan Salvatore's son was being born. Romeo Salvatore was being born.

Elena was breathing heavily, finally it was over. But.. Where was Romeo? The midwife had taken him away, but to where? She needed her baby. She WANTED him. Without thinking about how her whole body felt like jelly from such an exhausting labour, Elena tried to get out of the bed.

"Where's my baby?" Elena gasped reaching out for someone to place him in her arms.

She could hear him crying now, and it was the most beautiful sound in the world. The redhead came over.

"You'll have him shortly, we just need to clean him up a little first. You rest."

Damon stood there, holding onto Elena's hand for he felt that if he didn't he would have collapsed. He watched the mid-wife, as she left the room again, but this time came back with a baby in her arms. It was so tiny, and... It had some brown hair on his head. It wasn't crying anymore.

"It's tiny!" He cried, wondering if that's normal.

The midwife however was calm. "Why, That's normal... He'll grow in a big strong boy."

And with that she handed the baby over to Elena. As she was passing Romeo, he opened his little lapis-lazuli eyes and looked at him. AT HIM!

"He looked at me!" He exclaimed.

What a stupid thing to ask her to do. Rest? How the hell could she rest when she'd just gone through a labour as traumatic as that? And if Stefan was with them it would have been even more traumatic, that was for sure. The time that passed, (thought it wasn't really long at all) seemed forever until little Romeo was back once again. Elena looked at Damon and couldn't help but smile, the only other time she'd seen him this happy was when she told him that she loved him. Elena cradled Romeo in her arms and couldn't help but notice his eyes were an exact reflection of.. Damon's? His hair was light though, the same colour as hers and Stefan's and his face was slightly more round than the Salvatore next to her; he also had Elena's olive skin.

"Hello Romeo, say hi to Daddy Damon," she grinned, unable to contain her happiness.

Damon could just stare at the child. He'd never really been the one to even think about having a baby. HELLO. He was a vampire, they don't procreate. Although, here was Romeo. And he was real, but how did that happen? He had no idea. He had no experience with babies WHATSOEVER. He cleared his throat, before speaking seriously.

"Hello." He sounded official, which was quite amusing considering the fact that he was talking to a baby that was barely few minutes old. Pathetic, too.

Elena couldn't help but brush her hand over the child's small delicate features; Romeo was definitely the most beautiful baby in the world and as of now, the most important person in her life. Yes, that did include both Damon and Stefan. Stefan would be awfully upset to have missed Romeo's birth.. But At least she had Damon here. She grinned up at Damon and pulling him down by his collar slightly to plant a soft kiss on his lips before releasing him.

"His eyes are so much like yours... He's so tiny isn't he?" she whispered, looking from Romeo to Damon a few times.

Damon kissed her back, closing his eyes for a second, before opening them again to look at the child.

"Mhm." He nodded.

Danny+Jackie x3