I am trying to finish this story as soon as possible. I will try to update either every day or every other day. It is the only way that I will feel free to start something new. I hope you enjoy.

Future Elena's POV

Almost two hours after the text from Caroline, and I am still waiting impatiently in my kitchen for Elena to come home. Half of the time I spend pacing back and forth wondering what Damon and the other me could be doing right now, and the other half, I am furiously texting Caroline for anymore scoop about this mystery date. The only details she gives me leave me even more confused. I never got to go on a date with Damon, so I don't know what is normal, but I definitely didn't expect karaoke, carnival games, and hand holding. The thought that they are having so much fun should fill me with joy, but I feel a tight sensation in the pit of my stomach like my insides are knotting together.

The sound of the door opening propels me from my seat where I confront a beaming Elena holding a teddy bear with a pink bow in its hair. Her first words are nothing but complimentary, but I fix her with a withering stare that she seems too distracted to notice. "It is official. You are a genius. I'm sorry I ever doubted you," Elena jubilantly apologizes.

The mood instantly becomes tense, when she hears the angry tone in my voice. "Do you have any idea what time it is? I have been so worried," I bark loudly at Elena like a concerned parent.

Elena's eyebrows scrunch together forming a quizzical glare. She calmly looks at her watch and resumes staring as if I am an escapee from a mental institution, which technically I am, but hardly relevant.

"It's 10:15, and since we're not Amish, that makes me very early, because my curfew isn't till midnight. Want to tell me what this is about," Elena inquires suspiciously?

I stutter nervously attempting to form a coherent response. "Well, that, that, is beside the point, obviously," I reply weakly.

Elena simply looks amused now and asks, "Remind me again. What was the point?" Her smirk grows wider until she hears my answer and then it disappears altogether.

My true reason comes bursting out, and I am fighting tears with every word. "You kissed him. It wasn't even supposed to be a real date, and you kissed him and there was hand holding. I never got public kissing or dates or hand holding," I admit disappointedly. Elena's face falls at my confession. Her expression no longer holds any trace of humor. All I see is sympathy and understanding.

She leads me over to the couch and sits me down. "Want to hold the bear," Elena offers like we're still in Kindergarten?

My response holds more bitterness and frustration than I would like. In the back of my mind, I know it's not her fault, but she's the only one in the room to blame. "I'm a grown woman. I don't need to hold a bear like I'm a child," I reply slightly snappish.

She doesn't sink to my level and snap back, even though she has every right to. "Sometimes we all need something to hold onto, so you hold onto this bear, and I'll hold onto you," Elena compromises. Her arm circles around my shoulders, and she pulls me down until I am leaning on her shoulder. I smile dimly and gently remove the bear from her grasp, and I clutch it close to my chest. "It's okay sometimes to be jealous. Truth be told, when I saw you up in our room last night with Damon, I was pretty jealous myself," Elena confesses to my disbelief.

Her admitting that she feels the same way as I do about our twisted little arrangement brings a sense of relief. No matter what, it's as if I'm not alone. There is at least one other person who understands, myself. "If we're being open, I also might have been the tiniest bit jealous that you got to sleep in the same bed as Damon. That simple act of holding each other and sleeping together is another one of the many experiences that Damon and I never had in our future," I admit regretfully.

She smiles sadly at my honesty and hugs me a little tighter.

Elena fixes me with her best sympathetic caring face, and I realize why people find it difficult to say no to me. Who could say no to that face? The voice filled with thoughtfulness doesn't hurt either. "I understand why it feels wrong seeing me with him, but this is what you wanted, remember that. You went through Hell and back again, so I could have the future that you never got to have."

When Elena explains it to me in a rational manner, I of course feel silly for ever being jealous, since everything she says is correct. "See when you say it like that, it sounds kind of stupid," I half-joke.

"Is there a non-stupid version," Elena questions fairly with only a tiny hint of mockery?

I can't help but laugh at her question, and she smiles at the lightening of my mood. "Probably not," I concede with a smile on my face.

"It may be stupid and irrational, but after what you've been through, you deserve to be a little stupid and irrational," Elena reasons.

"So you don't think I'm insane," I ask optimistically?

Her answer only seeks to lift my spirits. "Oh, no, you're bat shit crazy. I'm just saying that I understand and you're not alone," Elena replies sarcastically. We both erupt in a fit of giggles, and for a second I feel like a normal high school girl in the arms of a trusted friend. She even tries to bring me some much needed perspective, but she doesn't know enough of the truth to realize how depressing her suggestion truly is.

"Look at it this way, once you fix things in my time, you can return to your new future and have all of those moments that you missed out on," Elena adds hopefully. My heart breaks a little, more than I thought was possible after all this time. She can't be blamed for her ignorance. The last thing that I want is anyone knowing the truth about my own future. They would only worry needlessly, and it's not as if they could stop it. I know the deal I made, but today I'm finding it difficult to live with.

So instead of dwelling on the things I can't change, I plaster a brave smile on my face and excuse myself for the night. Elena raises a few eyebrows at my sudden desire to leave, but she doesn't question me further. She simply hugs me one last time and bids me good night and sweet dreams. I need to leave. I need to see him. There is no place I'd rather be with what little time I have left. Klaus will be here soon enough if Elijah has any say in the matter, and this will all be over, at least for me.

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