It must have been love but it's over now.
It must have been good but I lost it somehow.
It must have been love but it's over now.
From the moment we touched 'til the time had run out.
Long lost & gone
Chapter 15
"Hello." the voice sounded like music to her ears.
"Caroline, you need to do something for me."
"Sure." Caroline's voice sounded relaxed, not disturbed by the distress in Elena's voice.
"Get Damon as far away from Mystic Falls as possible." she felt herself slipping away, barely able to get the words out.
Caroline's voice was alerted now, hearing the pain in Elena's voice "Elena, what?"
She didn't have time for this, not only because Stefan was already tracking him down but because the puddle of blood on the floor became larger every second "Get him out of here, tell him to never come back."
Caroline yelled in the phone, not knowing what was going on "He won't listen, Elena."
"Use vervain, stake his legs. I don't care, just get him out of here." her voice was begging, begging her best friend to save the man she loved more than her own life, begging because even if she died, he needed to live.
"Elena, are you okay?" Caroline's voice sounded like echo's in her head, hearing them but not quite clear.
"Just get him out of here, please Caroline."she was pleading because there wasn't anyone else she could call, not before passing out, not before Stefan would have already found him.
"Okay.." Caroline was unsure, questioning the situation.
"Tell him to never come back." her voice was a whisper, slowly slipping away in the dark space that was coming at her.
"Elena, I don't understand. What's going on?" Caroline was restless, still trying to make sense of this, still trying to understand what the hell was going on.
"Please Care, you are our last hope." she clapped her phone shut, hoping that her friend would reach Damon on time, hoping that she wouldn't get killed while trying to accomplish her human friend's last wish.
She put the phone back in the bag, even if she was going to die, she wasn't going to let a trail behind, she wasn't going to give them any clues that would only lead them faster to him. Hearing the phone thump in her bag, she closed her eyes and was surrounded by the darkness that was coming at her.
"Elena, wake up." she felt someone slapping her cheek, trying to pull her back from the dark place she was in.
"Come on Elena, we don't have time for this."the voice sounded impatient, annoyed.
Her eyes fluttered and everything was so blurry she couldn't see a thing, only big spots that clouded her vision.
"Finally, you've been out for a day, we don't have time for this, you know?" Bonnie hopped of the bed and pulled her closet open, she could hear the sound of clothes being pushed out of the way.
She couldn't answer, not able to understand how she was still alive, how she had survived, why they had spared her life "I'm alive." her voice was a whisper, it sounded hoarse from the time she hadn't used it.
Bonnie came towards the bed again, not sitting on it but standing next to her "Yes, but don't get any ideas in your head, there isn't any vampire blood in your system. I cast a spell on you."
She pushed herself up, trying to see more than just the ceiling and the floor besides the bed "Why would you do that?"
Bonnie put her hands on her hip "Because I couldn't let you attend the rehearsal dinner covered in blood and bruises." she spoke to her like a nanny addressed a toddler.
She shook her head, not able to understand how her once friend could do this to her "Didn't you see what he has done? He hit me again. Bonnie, I can't stay with him." the words came out broken, pleading.
Bonnie walked back towards her closet again, searching in it"You're surprised? After what you told him? First you tell him that you don't want to marry him anymore after he forgave you for cheating on him with his brother. Then you insulted him and rubbed it in his face, you had it coming."
She shook her head, not understanding that this was really happening "If Damon would have done this, he would be dead by now."
Bonnie turned around, two dresses in her hand "Damon didn't just do one thing wrong, he did a thousand of them, he deserves to die."
"No Bonnie, I know you're mad because of Jeremy but it was an accident, it wasn't his fault, it was no one's fault, nobody deserves to die Bonnie."
Bonnie placed the dresses on the bed, gently so they wouldn't wrinkle "He's going to die Elena, after the rehearsal party I will track him down and in two days the name Damon Salvatore will never be mentioned again."
Tears rolled down her cheeks "No Bonnie, you can't do that, please I beg you. I'll marry Stefan, I'll stay here, just don't hurt him." she was begging, begging for his life instead of hers because he mattered so much more to her than her own existence.
Bonnie gave her a look full of pity "I won't be the one killing him, I'll just track him down so his brother can drive a stake through his heart, something he should have done years ago."
She grabbed Bonnie's arm "No please." tears were streaming down her face, realizing something she moved so she was sitting on the edge of the bed "Where is Stefan?"
Bonnie pulled her arm back "He's out."
She felt her heart squeeze in pain but found the strength to get up"I have to stop him, I can't let this happen."
Bonnie got up as well "Relax, he's just at the grill to prepare everything for the rehearsal dinner, seeing his fiancé wasn't able to attend." Bonnie gave her a dirty look "He's leaving tomorrow after the wedding."
For some twisted reason she felt relieved, happy because it gave Caroline more time to get him safe.
Bonnie put one hanger back in her closet and pushed the other dress in her hands "You've never worn this one before, he's perfect for this occasion. The color fits Stefan's eyes perfectly." her voice sounded smug.
She looked down at the emerald green dress in her hands, remembering the one time she had held it before, the time when she was still happy.
"So Jenna bought me two dresses." she held up the azure blue dress and the emerald green dress, showing them to her friends, not knowing which one to choose.
"They're both beautiful Elena." Jeremy's voice came from the couch.
She turned her head around with a big smile "Thanks Jer, but that's not really helping." she turned back to Stefan and Bonnie who were still studying the dresses.
"Come on! Help me pick, I have to get ready." she was impatient, wanting to look at her best when Damon received his medal, the public thought that the medal was for being the eldest from one of the founding families, but everyone in the council knew that he was given the medal for all the vampires he had killed in the last year, protecting the town from evil, evil like himself. But that didn't matter, even if this was all a charade she wanted to look nice for him.
"The green one." Bonnie pointed at the dress in her left hand and nodded approvingly
There was a knock on the door and Jeremy jumped from the couch to open it.
"Yes, wear the green one." Stefan came closer and studied the dress before giving his consent.
Caroline walked in and threw her bag on the couch next to Jeremy before walking to Bonnie and standing still "Hi guys."
Elena looked up, holding the two dresses in the air "Care, blue or green?" her excitement was rubbing off on everyone, she could hear them chuckling and saw them looking at each other with smiles on their faces.
"The blue one Lena." Caroline pointed at her right hand.
She heard Bonnie and Stefan sigh and Jeremy chuckle on the couch.
"Just pick one Elena, you always look beautiful." Stefan came to stand next to her and put an arm around her.
Bonnie stepped forward with a smile on her round face "You've been going to this founder's parties since you were little, it never bothered you what you were wearing, why is this so special?"
"Because this party is in honor of me." Damon walked in the room, struggling with his tie while his white shirt was still unbuttoned and his abs and flat stomach were visible underneath the thin material.
Her stomach started fluttering, remembering her that it had been a week since the last time they made love, remembering her that it craved him, that it craved him inside her, on her, next to her, with her.
He let out a growl and pulled on the tie "Get me a stake, I want to kill myself." he looked down frustrated at the tie.
She saw Bonnie leaning towards Stefan, whispering something in his ear that sounded like "Go get a stake before he changes his mind." Stefan just snickered at her comment.
Caroline looked towards Damon "Maybe you should button your shirt first."
He looked at her like he wanted to kill her with his tie, he growled again, pulling on his tie and marching from one side of the room to the other.
She smiled, seeing her evil vampire struggle with the little piece of fabric in his hands "Come here, let me help you." she shrugged of Stefan's arm, walking towards the place he finally stood still and turned him around so his back was facing the eyes that were fixed on them.
She felt the electricity between their bodies, remembering her that his hold on her was unbreakable, that she would suffer if she would ever try to break it.
She started buttoning his shirt, starting with the last button and making her way upwards while letting her finger trail along his flat stomach and abs, she looked at his body longing, longing for it to touch hers again, to make hers scream again, to make hers his again.
Looking up she found him staring at her, smirking and boring his eyes into hers when they locked. She could see the lust in his eyes, the lust that made her tummy squeeze together again. 'I miss you' she mouthed the words at him, knowing Stefan and Caroline would even hear her when she tried to whisper them.
His face became serious and the smirk disappeared 'I miss you too.' he mouthed the words at her and gave her a look that made her tear up. The look was full of pain, full of agonizing pain because his body was screaming for hers like hers was for his, his soul was calling for his other half, tearing his limbs apart to find it and his frozen heart was crying for the other heart that could make it beat again.
Feeling brave, knowing that she was invisible for the eyes that were directed on them, she pressed a kiss against his chest, feeling her lips tremble against his skin, feeling hot tingles spread through her body and awakening every sleeping nerve in it to collide again with their possessor.
She separated her lips from his skin to look up again at his face, finding his eyes closed, biting his lips, restraining himself from pushing her against the wall and claim her as his own again. She knew she wouldn't fight him if he did it, she would let him take her against the wall with the four pair of eyes watching them, she would bruise his mouth with her lips and push him deep inside her till the painful hole in her chest would finally be healed again.
His eyes snapped open and his lips parted, unconsciously she felt herself lean towards him, her eyes focused on his, her lips waiting for his. Her nose almost touched his when she felt the hand on her stomach, pushing her back. She saw the warning in his eyes and snapped out of his spell, she was still shielded from their audience's view by his body and couldn't help herself but press her lips against his chest one more time, saying goodbye to it before closing the last three buttons on his shirt.
"You should were the blue one." his voice cut through her whole body like a knife, knowing that it was the same voice that whispered against her skin every time she felt the waves of pleasure taking over her body, a pleasure granted by his body. He would whisper soothing words against her skin when she thought that her breathing was going to stop and her heart was going to give out because it was too much for her body to take.
"Why is that?" she straightened his collar and pulled the knot out of his tie, stroking the skin on his neck once while placing the two pieces of tie on his chest.
"Because I'm the guest of honor so this evening is about me and I should get to choose." she wanted to tell him that it was always about him, that her whole life and heart were consumed by him, that her every thought was owned by him, that her whole being was about him.
She smiled up at him, realizing the mistake she just made when his eyes locked immediately with hers, her stomach clenched together seeing his lips were swollen from biting on them, red and wet from licking on them. It took all her self-control not to pull his head down and push them against every inch of her body. Before she lost it and betrayed both of them, she lifted her gaze from his and looked at the tie she was knotting. "We'll see." she managed to get a small smile on her lips before pulling the tie straight and stroking the material of his shirt with her finger.
He swung his jacket over his shoulders and straightened it, stroking the back of her hand with his thumb, she pulled her hand of his shirt and looked at him one last time, meeting the ocean blue eyes that had become her home in such a short time but that would remain her home for the rest of her life.
He broke their trance and turned around, walking away from her. It took every strength she could find to not go after him and push his skin against hers, she wouldn't care about the tie she had just knotted perfectly, it would come off without a second thought and be one the ground with the rest of their clothes.
"Elena, which dress? Green or blue?" Caroline held her two dresses up in the air, already wearing her beautiful red one.
"Blue."
"Get changed, the guests are arriving in one hour." Bonnie walked out the door, leaving her alone with the dress she hadn't worn six years ago because it fitted with the wrong pair of eyes.
Bonnie drove her to the grill, not leaving her side, afraid she was going to run. The grill was decorated with white flowers and the atmosphere seemed so happy, peaceful, save. All those thoughts disappeared when Stefan walked towards her, an apologetic smile on his face.
"Elena, I'm so glad you're alright, I'm so sorry." he tried to pull her in a hug but she pushed him away, shaking her head.
"Don't, don't touch me." she stepped backwards bumping against the table with gifts from their friends and families.
He came closer "Elena, I never wanted to hurt you, I just lost it. I'm so sorry, you know I would never do that on purpose."
She clutched the table, needing something to hold onto "Stefan, I don't want to be here, I don't want to be your wife, just let me go."
Bonnie spoke for Stefan, appearing on his side and trapping her with their bodies "That is not going to happen Elena, we only want what is best for you."
She felt helpless, knowing that she couldn't escape them "Why are you doing this? What happened to my friend? The Bonnie I knew would have never done this to me."
Bonnie let out a hard laugh "The Bonnie you knew wasn't betrayed by her best friend."
She held back the tears in her eyes, not wanting to explain them to the guests that were arriving "I didn't betray you, I know you're mad about Jeremy, but it wasn't my fault. It was no one's fault."
Bonnie shook her head, looking at her like she was explaining this to a five year old "That's not what I was talking about." she sniffed "You chose a killing, conscienceless, impulsive, manipulative vampire over your best friend since childhood, you betrayed me."
"I never chose him over anyone, I just wanted to protect him, it wasn't his fault either." she felt the anger rise from deep inside her, being convicted for a crime she never committed.
Stefan stepped forward again, making her pull back even more "You're done protecting him, you're done playing his guardian angel. It's time for a new role, you're going to be my wife and right this evening, you're going to be the happiest bride-to-be the world has ever seen."
She shook her head, feeling a tear rolling over her cheek "I can't do this."
Stefan laughed and looked at her, his face cruel, it made her think of the time he was on human blood "Yes you can and you will or my brother's dead will be even more painful."
He didn't give her the time to answer and grabbed her arm in an unbreakable grip, dragging her to the entrance where their guests were waiting, waiting to congratulate the happy couple.
"Elena, I'm so happy for you !" Amey, someone who had been in high school with her but she hadn't seen since graduation pulled her into a hug "Even in high school I knew you two were made for each other."
"Thank you Amey." she hugged her back and smiled politely, not bothering to correct her.
This went on for more than an hour, greeting people that hadn't been in her life for the past six years, that had no clue of what was going on, that still saw her and Stefan as the perfect couple, that were so happy for them that it made her stomach turn upside down.
Finally she saw some familiar faces in the crowd "Jenna! Ric!" them being here made her feel safer, more comfortable because with Alaric nearby, Stefan wouldn't try to hurt her.
Jenna ran towards her, arms open "Sweetie! Everything looks great." she reached her niece and pulled her into a hug, Alaric was right behind her and smiled at Elena, she let go of Jenna's back and waved at him.
"Jenna, I need air." her aunt let go of her and held her at arm's length to study her outfit.
"Sweetie, I'm not fond of the dress." she pulled up her eyebrow and studied the dress once more.
Elena laughed and looked down at the emerald green dress "You're not the only one."
"I still think you should have worn the green one." Bonnie had been nagging all the way towards the Lockwood house, she didn't care, she wanted to surprise Damon with his choice.
They entered just on time to see him receive the medal and listen to his speech, which he claimed to not have prepared but she knew otherwise. During the speech, he locked his eyes several times with hers and flashed her a smile that left her breathless, the audience applauded when he finished and he was given pats on the back while leaving the stage. Sheriff Forbes invited them all for drinks in the ballroom of the estate and Stefan had asked her to dance with him. The evening went by peacefully, she stayed with her friends most of the time and danced with Matt and Tyler when they had asked her to.
She had been glancing towards the star of the night during the whole evening, wanting him by her side, wanting to be by his side, wanting to steal just a moment of this evening with him. But every time she looked at him there was someone else congratulating him, patting his back and keeping him out of her reach.
It was time for the mayor's speech so they all gathered in the other room of the mansion, entering the room she saw Damon leaning against the back wall, his attention directed at the stage where Liz and the Carol were preparing the stage. She couldn't lose this opportunity, not now he was finally alone and she could have a moment with him, just to talk to him, just to look in his eyes and make her body feel at ease again.
"Ugh, I don't want to hear this." Caroline's voice sounded irritated "I'm going to the ladies room."
Bonnie pulled her back and grabbed her arm "Wait, I'm coming with you."
Seeing they had already crossed the room and were out of earshot she put her hand on Stefan's arm "I'm going with them." she turned around before she heard him mutter "Okay."
She made her way towards the door in the back of the room, smiling back at the neighbors and schoolmates that crossed her path. Walking towards the back of the room she only felt her heart beating faster, her smile getting wider, her body getting more excited because of the distance that disappeared between her body and her drug, because that is what he was, he was her drug and she was the addict, every moment she spend without him she experienced the withdrawals that came with her addiction and every moment she was with him, she felt the high from it.
His attention was still focused on the stage, the mayor had already started talking and everyone was listening carefully, she knew that Caroline and Bonnie wouldn't come back before he was done, she hoped he would talk forever.
She was only a few steps away from him when he turned his head towards her and smirked, looking up and down her body, studying the dress she had chosen.
"I like your dress." his voice was low, not wanting to disturb the speech that was going on.
She leaned against the wall, making sure that her body wasn't touching his, she wouldn't want to be responsible for the consequences that would come with only a feather light touch "I like it too." she smiled at him, keeping her eyes locked on his, drowning in them.
"I wasn't fond of the other one, it matched Stefan's eyes too well." she saw him flinch, still hurting, still hurting from having to share her with his brother.
She looked down, stroking his sleeve softly, not able to keep her distance when he was hurting "That's why I picked this one, I wanted it to match yours." she fumbled with the seam of his sleeve and looked up.
He smiled at her and turned his head back to the stage, not wanting to hurt more because of the moment he could finally spend with her, not wanting to think about the moment she would leave and go back to Stefan and leave him behind.
They didn't talk but she kept her eyes on him, not able to look anywhere else, not able to ignore the knot in her stomach, not able anymore to just stand next to him and not feel him against her.
He must have felt the same way, she saw his hands pinching the glass in his hands, trying not to break it but just keeping his hands busy so he wouldn't have them on her. She couldn't stand this anymore, she needed to touch him, she needed him more than anything, she should have cared about the fact that people could see them, that people would ask questions if they saw it but it didn't keep her from sticking her hand out and grabbing his, pulling it down and holding it against the wall so she could stroke it with her fingers.
He turned his head around, smiling at her while his body seemed to relax by her touch "You're playing with fire." he started stroking her hand with his thumb, together finding a rhythm that soothed their need for each other.
She pushed herself closer to him, pushing her leg against his, pressing her shoulder against his so her whole side was on fire, it wasn't a pleasant feeling but she needed this, her body needed this so she would give it whatever she could get "I'm already on fire."
The lust in his eyes made her lust even increase, something she thought wouldn't be possible. His eyes were shimmering, boring into hers, trying to find a way to take her here and now without anyone noticing "You're going to get burned."
"I already am." she could see in his eyes that he knew what she was talking about, she was burned because he was burned on her, she was still burning for him, the fire in her heart that wouldn't go out, that would never stop burning for him, that would keep burning her insides until he would put it out.
He let go of her hand, not wanting to get caught and turned his head to the floor. Unable to keep stroking her hand if he wanted so much more, so much more than he could take in this moment.
"I hate this." she crossed her arms, holding herself while trying to keep the tears inside, her voice sounded broken, helpless, exhausted, exhausted from all the fighting, fighting with her insides to deny them what they wanted, fighting her soul for not letting it collide with its other half, fighting her heart for not letting it love the right person.
Maybe it were the tears that escaped her eyes, maybe it was the sound of her broken voice or maybe it was just because he needed this as much as her but something made him reach for her, grabbing her hand and pull her closer towards him, encircling her shoulders with his arms and pulling her head in his chest.
She pushed her arms under his jacket, just needing to touch some part of him, she clawed his shirt in her fists while moving her head upwards so her temple was touching his chin, she felt a soft kiss against her forehead and pushed it forwards so his lips pressed harder against it.
He rubbed her back, calming her down and letting her body ease against his. The tears stopped and she just held him because she couldn't let go, she would never be able to let him go, she felt him pull his arms back, grabbing her shoulders and push her gently away from his body.
She could see that the crowd was becoming restless, the speech was over "You should go back to Stefan." he stroked the remaining tears away with his fingers.
She looked around, seeing Stefan still in the same spot, not aware of what was going on behind him, Caroline and Bonnie walked back into the room and made their way towards her boyfriend, she shook her head, boring her eyes into his and reaching for the hands on her face "This is were I belong."
He smiled at her and nodded, squeezing her hands "Yes it is, but not yet." he let go of her hands and turned around while her name was called in the background.
"Elena, is Cooper already here?" Alaric looked around, standing on tiptoes.
"No, actually now you mention it, I haven't seen him." she shook her head, confused, he told her he would be here.
"Weird, he told me he would be here." she smiled at Alaric, confirming her thoughts.
"Maybe he's just running late." Alaric smiled back at her and walked towards the bar.
"There he is." Jenna pointed towards the entrance and started waving, Alaric was back on her side in two seconds.
Cooper smiled at them and waved back at Jenna, he came towards them and pulled Jenna in a hug, grabbed Alaric in a man hug and turned back towards her to give her a kiss on the cheek.
"Having a bad hair day?" Alaric punched his cousin on the shoulder.
Cooper laughed with him, ruffling his hair with his hand "No, just some other things to do." he looked at Elena, giving her a knowing look.
"You were doing someone?" Alaric punched him again and it reminded her of the time he used to have this conversations with Damon, always about sex, woman and alcohol.
"Ugh, you two are disgusting." Jenna growled and pulled Alaric with her towards the bar, leaving her and Cooper alone.
He wasted no time and turned around, facing her "I'm sorry, I had to pick up Caroline."
She looked around, searching for Caroline "Where is she? Did something happen to her?" she was already panicking, knowing that Damon wouldn't have surrendered without a fight.
Cooper put his hand on her arm, pulling her attention back to him "She was in pretty bad shape so she called me, I picked her up and brought her home, she told me she would be fine after a few blood bags." she saw him flinch, still not fully used to the idea of vampires.
"Oh god, this is all my fault." she sat down on the chair behind her, seeing Cooper pulling a chair out besides her.
He shook his head "No Elena, she's going to be okay. The question is are you going to be?" he looked at her, his eyes studying every expression on her face.
"Is Damon safe?" she whispered, knowing that her forced-husband-to-be had vampire hearing.
"I don't know, Caroline didn't really want to talk, she is one angry woman when she's in pain." Coop laughed but stopped when he saw the shock on Elena's face "I think he's okay Elena, Caroline told me she would try to be here as soon as possible, she'll explain it to you."
Elena relaxed and sighed "Are you sure she's okay?" Coop nodded before she had spoken the full sentence "I need a drink."
Coop laughed at her frustrated tone and they both stood up, walking towards the bar but were pulled in the kitchen before they could reach it.
"That man of yours is one stubborn vampire." Caroline growled and sucked on her blood bag, the scars disappeared and became red lines on her skin.
Elena hugged her friend "I'm so sorry, I'm glad you're alright but you were the only one I could ask." she pulled back, not really comfortable with the blood bag besides her head.
Caroline put the blood bag down and pulled her friend back in an embrace "It's okay Elena but tell me what's going on?"
She held Caroline's shoulders tighter "It doesn't matter, the only thing that matters is that you are safe and hopefully Damon too?" she pulled back to see Caroline's face, waiting for her friend to answer the most important question of the day.
Caroline nodded "Yea, he is safe. He's not going to be happy when he wakes up though." she laughed and gave Elena an apologetic smile.
Elena looked at her friend, curious about what she meant "What did you do?"
Caroline sat down on the kitchen counter, preparing herself to tell her story "Well, I knew that I wouldn't be able to stake him from close by so I shot him first with Alaric's vervain darts, I had to hit him three times before he was on the ground."
Elena flinched, she knew she would kill Caroline for doing it when she hadn't been the one to suggest it in the first place "So how did you get the scars?"
Caroline's face lit up "I was coming to that part. When he was down I put the gun away and went to him, when I wanted to pick him up he threw me against the wall and tried to choke me, he stopped when he saw it was me."
Elena stepped forwards, curious "What did he say?"
Caroline looked at the ground ashamed "I told him that you wanted me too, that I needed to get him out of here and that he could never come back. He didn't believe me, you should have seen the look on his face, you could see his heart break in his eyes."
Elena was unable to speak, knowing she had hurt him again, not only mentally but also physically. Cooper put his hand on Caroline's shoulder, offering her some kind of support "What happened next?"
"He backed away from me so he could process what I said and I staked him again, Alaric told me that five darts is the most a vampire can handle but he gave me nine of them, just to make sure." Caroline looked up, tears in her eyes, remembering the horrible scene in front of her, her eyes locked on Elena's
Elena felt her heart clench, clenching because it knew that Damon wouldn't stop fighting "How many?" she looked at Caroline, tears rolling down her cheek.
"Eight vervain darts and two wooden stakes."
Elena gasped, not believing that she could have done this, while she tried so hard to keep everybody from hurting him, she herself had given Caroline permission to hurt him so much that it could be life-threatening, that she could have lost him while trying to save him.
"He just wouldn't stop fighting, he wanted to get to you. It was all he could say, that he needed to save you. He thought that I had sided with Bonnie and Stefan, he tried to kill me with his last strength so you would be save." she saw the hurt on her friend's face and crossed the room to hold her in her arms, knowing that no one else would have done this for her, no one would have confronted a vampire that killed without blinking just because their friend has asked them to, no questions asked.
Caroline was sobbing in her arms, both their sobs filled the room. Cooper was rubbing their backs, trying to soothe them but not knowing how to deal with two crying women"Elena there is something else I need to tell you." Caroline looked up.
She nodded and wiped the tears of the vampire's face before putting her curls behind her ears.
"I called Elijah." Caroline looked at Elena with sorrow in her eyes, sorrow because Elijah had betrayed them six years ago, sorrow because she knew Damon had never trusted him, sorrow because she had put his life in the enemy's hands.
Elena step backwards, releasing Caroline from her hold and shook her head "Why did you do that?" her voice was full of worry, shock.
"Because Bonnie would suspect something if I didn't show up at the wedding tomorrow. She would find both of us and I wouldn't be able to keep Damon down for very long. Elijah can handle him and he owes us for six years ago. He told me that he would take care of Damon because you trusted him six years ago to take care of you and he betrayed that trust, he wants to make it up to you."Caroline looked at her, asking her to forgive her with her eyes.
She had to forgive her, how could she not when her friend had risked her life to safe both her and a vampire that did horrible things to her, how could she not forgive the friend that had supported her through anything and everything, how could she blame her friend for making one selfish choice that would protect her in the end, how could she ever forgive her if she shouldn't have been in that position in the first place, knowing that there was nothing to forgive, she ran towards Caroline, taking her in her arms for the fourth time that day, giving her the forgiveness she asked with the colliding of their tears.
"Where are you going?" Stefan's voice interrupted her march towards the stairs.
She turned around, crossing her arms in front of her chest "My room."
Stefan threw his jacket on the sofa and approached her with an arrogant smile on his face "You mean Damon's room."
She did that eye-thing she learnt from Damon, that look he got on his face when something was obvious "Well yeah.."
Stefan came towards her, trapping her between his body and the stair railing "You're sleeping with me tonight, I have had enough of this bullshit. You're my wife, you belong in my bed. Tonight Bonnie is coming over with his location and not long after that he'll be dead, you better get used to it."
The hard laugh that came out of her throat made him take a step back, his chin up "By the time you get there he'll be long gone. You think he's right here under your nose don't you? You think you'll jump in your car drive for maybe twenty miles and find him? You're wrong, he's not even on this continent. You'll never reach him on time, I took care of that." her voice was arrogant, putting on an act because she had no idea where he was, it all depended on Elijah, she just hoped she was right.
"You warned him?" his voice sounded surprised, taken aback by her confession.
"Of course I did, you thought I had no way to reach him? You were wrong Stefan, I always find my way to him, I always will." she shrugged, not able to hold her arrogant tone back.
She saw him snap, the demon taking over his face, darks veins around his eyes and fangs extending in his mouth, he came towards her with inhuman speed and grabbed her arm, bruising it while doing so. He dragged her with him, crossing the living room, the parlor and hallway before finally pushing her down the stairs in the basement and throwing her in one of the cages, closing the door behind him.
He threw her into the corner and crouched in front of her "We're going to make this clear once and for all, Damon Salvatore will die even if I have to spend the rest of my eternal life searching for him."
"No." she shook her head fiercely "You're not going to hurt him, I'll not let that happen."
Stefan shook his head frustrated "You're so bent on protecting him." he shook his head again"You shouldn't want to protect him, you should protect your fiancé. Not the man that was just there to keep the bed warm when I wasn't at home. That's it, isn't it? He was there because you didn't want to be alone."
She shook her head, angry at him for thinking that he could even believe for a second that Damon only was a replacement for him, that he had been her first chose "God. NO."
"Why are you doing this to yourself?"
He opened his eyes, looking but not really seeing anything "I haven't seen you in three weeks."
She crouched next to the couch where he was still lying fully clothed, she could smell the alcohol coming of him "I've been here every day." she stroked his hair, not knowing what else to do.
He shook his head "You know what I mean." the words came out slurred, she just had to put the words together to figure out what he was saying.
This had been going on for two weeks, after the founder's party he would come home every night drunk and pass out on the couch. In the morning he would be gone and return home in the middle of the night, drunk again.
"Come on, let's get you into bed." she tugged on his arm, trying to get some movement in his body. He only pulled his arm back and closed his eyes again, snuggling into the fabric of the couch.
"Too drunk." he muttered the words in the fabric of the couch and turned around, his back facing her.
She sighed and went to the end of the couch, pulling his boots off and placing them next to the coffee table, grabbing the blanket that was lying on it, she draped it over his feet and legs, seeing that his leather jacket was still on she started to remove it but his body just kept frozen "Damon come on, that can't be comfortable." she gave one last pull on it before surrendering.
She watched him, lying there, trying to figure out what was going on, why he had developed this routine in the past two weeks, she knew that they hadn't been able to make love in three weeks because Stefan was always there but that had happened before and he was able to deal with it back then.
She felt bad for not being there for him, not being able to take care of him when he got home drunk. Stefan would always tell her that it was his own fault and that she shouldn't worry about his brother but that didn't keep her from sneaking out of Stefan's room every night and watch him sleep on the couch, stroking his hair and letting his head rest on her lap while staring at his face.
"Damon move over." she gave his back a stump, trying to make room for her on the couch.
He turned around, his head facing the ceiling and his body occupying the whole couch "Why?"the word came out slurred again and she wondered how much alcohol was in his body because it took a whole amount of it to get a vampire this loaded.
"Because Stefan is finally out for the night and I'm not going to sleep without you next to me." she gave his body another push, trying to shove him out of the way with all her strength.
"Easy.." he turned on his side and shuffled himself against the back of the couch.
She grabbed his arm again, pulling it out of the sleeve of the leather jacket and pulling so hard on it that it came out from under his body so she could remove his other arm out of the jacket.
She tossed the jacket on the coffee table and pulled the blanket up that was covering his body, lying down on the couch and snuggling into his body.
"Happy now?" he looked down at her, his eyes hazy, not the usual clear ocean blue.
"No." she looked down, letting her head rest against his chest.
"Yea, me neither." he threw his arm around her and pulled her body closer to his.
She looked up again, alerted by his words "Why are you doing this?" she looked at his face.
He kept looking into the fire over her head but he seemed more sober than a few moments ago"If you chose me then why doesn't it feel like it?"
"Because we have to keep up this charade till the fight, it was your idea. You think he's going to go back on human blood if he finds out about us."she stroked his hair, not able to be angry anymore when she finally knew what was bothering him.
"But he is there every moment, every second of the day." he was frustrated, maybe sexually frustrated or just frustrated because they hadn't spend time together in the past three weeks.
"You think he suspects something?" she stared at his face, still not able to lock her eyes with his.
"No, I think he just wants to spend every second with you before the fight, in case it goes wrong." his voice became softer towards the end because he knew it could go wrong, he could lose her or she could lose him and it would tear them apart because their time together would have been too short, there would never be enough time for them to spend together.
"Is it wrong for me to want to spend those moments with you?" she had thought about this too, it was bothering her that she couldn't spend time with him while she and Stefan were always together, she spend what could be her last moments on earth with him and it frustrated her because there was only one person she needed every second of her life, her life that could soon be over, she could die or he could die but either way it would be over because she wasn't going to live without him, she had made that choice when she chose him, if he died she would follow him.
He finally looked at her, locking his eyes with hers but not saying a word, not able to blame her for the moments they lost to his lovesick brother. Not able to tell her that he was as lovesick as his brother, that he wanted every moment for the rest of her life to claim as his, that he wanted to be there every step of the way, every emotion she felt, every emotion they would experience together, he would be there for her through everything, make her feel and experience everything.
She saw the struggle on his face and pushed herself up, pressing her lips softly against his, waiting for their response, when they did, his whole body answered hers, he pushed himself up her, never leaving her lips and drove his hips into hers. She pushed the hem of his shirt up, only to feel his skin against hers again and started caressing every inch of it. He moaned against her mouth and released her lips from his hold to push her shirt op as well and fumbled behind her back to get her bra off her, when it was finally off he placed kisses on her breasts, squeezing them while teasing her nipples with his tongue, he went for the zipper of her pants but collapsed on her, she saw him struggling to get up, still beaten down by the alcohol.
"Shh, let me take care of you." she pushed him back in the couch, placing his head next to hers and his body flush against her.
She pulled of his shirt, kissing him while doing so and unzipped his pants to release him, putting her fingers behind the waistband of his boxers she reached her goal and started stroking his length, seeing his lips parting and his eyes flutter, she started stroking faster, feeling his hips thrusting himself in her hand and waiting for his release, she bowed down and took him in her mouth, swallowing his fluids and waiting for his length to soften again and put him back in his boxers.
He pulled her back up, kissing her and trying to get her pants off when she grabbed his hand and stopped him. He looked at her confused "What about y...?"
She stopped him with a kiss before he could ask her "I don't need it."
They both went silent because they knew why she didn't need it, because Stefan was still allowed to touch her, because two times a week she felt like a whore, cheap, willingly, unfaithful and most of all dirty.
She pushed herself closer to him, putting her arms around him and pressing her breasts against his chest, he did the same, pushing his arms around her and pulling every inch of her body against his.
"I love you." it had been too long since she last told him and the words were begging to get out.
He opened his eyes again and pressed a kiss against her lips "I know you do."
She knew he wasn't going to say it back, he had made it very clear that he would only say it back when she was fully his, when he didn't have to share her anymore with anyone else, when her whole heart, body and soul were his property and his only. It was useless to tell him she already was.
"Then what was he to you, Elena?" Stefan was still crouched in front of her, trapping her in the corner.
"He was my everything, he became everything to me. I didn't want to live without him." the tears were rolling down her face, making spots on the emerald green dress she was still wearing.
"But you're still alive." Stefan smiled at her "Maybe he didn't mean that much to you after all."
"No, I'm still alive because I made him a promise but it's not one I'm not going to keep."
"I'm scared."
She turned around, facing him and cupping his face in her hands, not wanting to let him go. Wanting to keep him here forever where he would be save, where Klaus or no other vampire could get to him.
"No one is going to let anything happen to you." he placed his hands on hers, squeezing her fingers with his.
She shook her head, looking in his eyes, seeing that he was as afraid as her "That's not what I fear." she squeezed his fingers back with hers, connecting them.
"You have nothing to be afraid of, I'm not going to let anything happen to you." he held her hands tighter, making their connection stronger.
Tears streamed over her cheeks, she tasted the salt on her lips, the taste of fear, not fearing for her own life but for his. Because if he died all this would have been for nothing, the fight would have been pointless, trying to keep her alive would have been pointless because she wasn't going to let him leave her behind.
"Damon.." she was silenced with the pressure of his lips against hers, begging her to not make this more difficult but she couldn't ignore this, she had to say this so she pulled her lips from his, holding his head still in her hands, catching the beautiful ocean blue eyes with her hazel ones "I can't lose you, if I lose you all of this will have been pointless."
He released her hands and grabbed her face in his hands, putting so much pressure on the sides of her head that it almost hurts, she could see the anger in his eyes, the way all his muscles in his body were reacting to that anger "You listen to me and you listen to me carefully. If something happens to me you are going to live, you're going to move on because I refuse to die for nothing, I will not let my brother and your friends risk their life for nothing."
The tears were still streaming down her face, wetting his hands together with her shirt "I'm not going to live without you." she yelled at him, angry at him because she knew if something happened to her he would take the liberty of killing himself and come right after her.
"NO." he yelled at her, his eyes wide and his teeth clenched "You're not listening. If I don't walk through that door tonight, you have to forget about me, you have to move on and forget that you ever knew me, you have to live your life, marry some random guy and have a bunch of kids."
She shook her head, not going to accept this, wanting to make him understand that she wasn't going to be miserable for the rest of her life because he wanted her to live without him "I love you, a life without you would have no meaning, no direction or no goal. It would be a waste to live it." she pressed her hands in the sides of his face, showing him that she could be as tough and demanding as him.
"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND." she closed her eyes, flinching away from the shout that came out of his throat, he pressed the sides of her face harder, waiting for her to open her eyes "I'm not going to die for nothing, I won't let those other people die for nothing, they're going to save you even if I die in the process but you will be saved, do you understand me?" he shook her head with his hands and bored his eyes into hers "All this will not be for nothing, you are not going to kill yourself because you think that a life without me would be a waste. Living is not a waste Elena, it would be a waste by throwing it away. So if I survive this or not, you are going to live your life and take every opportunity that comes on your way because that's what we're fighting for tonight, to give you those extra opportunities and experiences, I will not let you throw that away."
"No." she whimpered, trying to see through her tears, cursing herself for letting her love somebody so much, for making her life seem pointless when he wasn't there, she knew that she was selfish, that all her friends and family would be risking their lives tonight for her to live but she loved him so much, so much that she would always be selfish when it came to him, she would choose him over anyone, letting him live over anyone and if she didn't get to make that choice she would be selfish enough to take her own life so she didn't have to live without him.
"Yes." he nodded his head, meaning that it was the only right answer, the only answer that he would accept "Promise me." he bored his eyes into hers, pushing the right answer into her head "Promise me."
She just nodded her head, knowing that he wasn't going to let her make that choice, knowing that he wouldn't accept another answer, knowing that if he died, they could bury them in the same grave.
"What did you promise him?" Stefan stood up and started walking around the room, his face still angry and arrogant.
"I promised him that if he died, I would live." she let out a hard laugh, for him thinking that she could ever live without him.
Stefan stopped in his tracks and turned towards her "So if he dies you're going to kill yourself?"
She nodded her head "If you kill him, you better get used to the idea of being a widower because I refuse to take another breath or let my heart beat one more time without him being alive."
He spit at her and started phasing angry around the cage, slamming his fists in the wall before marching back towards her "Than why didn't you kill yourself six years ago? Why are you still alive?"
She stood up, letting him know that she wasn't afraid of him "Because he didn't die."
He laughed in her face "Yes he did. He was dead to you because I made him dead to you."
She shook her head, stubborn "No, he didn't die."
Stefan grabbed her arms, pushing her against the wall "Yes, he died." he spoke through clenched teeth.
She put her hands against his chest, trying to push him away or at least trying to put some distance between their bodies "You don't get it." she spit the words in his face "I knew he wasn't dead because I was still alive." she bored her eyes further into his "He couldn't be dead because I was still breathing and my heart was still beating, I kept on living because he did."
They kept staring at each other and she was waiting for the moment he would snap again and hit her to the point of her dead but he didn't do anything, he kept staring at her while they were both breathing heavy and daring the other to make the first move. She saw him open his mouth but he didn't get the chance to talk when the door swung open and Bonnie appeared, anger all over her face.
"What did you do?" the witch yelled into the room, forming echoes.
Elena didn't know who she was talking to, her or Stefan because her eyes switched between their bodies so she just kept staring back at Bonnie, trying to make sense of the situation. Maybe she had finally come to her senses and came to her rescue.
"I can't find him, I can't track him, what did you do?" the witch spoke through clenched teeth.
Relieve came over her, hearing the words of the witch, knowing that he was safe, that neither Stefan or Bonnie could get to him and hurt him, a smile spread across her face, disbelief in her voice "He found a way." she looked at Stefan and back to Bonnie, still laughing from relieve "He found a way."
Stefan let go of her and crossed the room towards Bonnie "What do you mean? You can't track him?" his voice was angry.
Bonnie shook her head "I've been trying all kind of spells, nothing works. Something is blocking me from finding him." she gave Elena a dirty look, accusing her with her eyes.
All she could do was laugh, laughing from relieve, happy because she had saved him, because he was save and nobody was going to touch him "He found a way." the words were the most beautiful ones she ever heard.
Stefan looked at her and pointed a finger at her "Don't get any ideas in your head, we'll find him. This war is coming to an end."
"Oh no, Stefan." she stoop up again, shaking her head and boring her eyes into his.
"This is just the beginning."