Author's Note: Elena just turned 18 in this chapter, I know in chapter six it said she was already 18 but that was a typo. Also, I'm sorry this is so late, I had to rewrite it three times do to it not saving -_- Enjoy

The next morning was Elena's eighteenth birthday. Snow had freshly fallen, which was an excellent surprise, Elena loved the snow. When she awoke, Damon was by her side, his arms wrapped protectively around her body, his hands gently cradling her belly and his left leg draped over hers. He was peaceful, his face as content and beautiful as an angel. She nuzzled his neck softly; wanting to draw in more of his warmth…it was much too cold. His gorgeous cerulean eyes fluttered open and he grinned wolfishly at her.

"Good morning, Beautiful." Elena opened her mouth to respond but stopped as she noticed Damon's body tense around hers. Less than a moment later she realized why. There was a persistent kneading sensation tickling the inside of her abdomen. This was the first time either of them had felt him kick.

"Good morning to you too, Son." He chuckled, rubbing the spot where Sebastian was continuing his kick-boxing routine.

Elena beamed up at Damon, the look of pure love in his eyes made her heart swell. He was so much more than just her fiancé. He was her soul mate, everything she could have ever wanted. To her, he was perfect. He leaned down, brushing his lips against hers gently, his tongue dancing with hers. He pulled back and smiled.

"What's that face?" He smiled wider.

"What face?" She giggled and brushed his hair from his eyes.

"That face." He sighed and took one hand off her stomach to entwine his fingers in her long brown locks.

"I'm happy." The sincerity in his voice made her melt and she nuzzled him again, wishing she could somehow get closer.

"Happy birthday, Elena. You know…now that you're eighteen there isn't anything stopping us…marry me. Tomorrow." He cooed, nibbling at her ear. She blushed and shook her head.

"Don't you think we should wait until Ian is born?" He looked thoughtful for a few moments and tilted his head to the side.

"His name is Sebastian." He pouted. She rolled her eyes and they smirked at each other, each bursting into laughter.

"I guess you're right, he'd make a cute little ring bearer, huh?" Without waiting for her to respond he rolled to be completely on top of her, supporting his weight with his arms, so he wouldn't hurt the baby.

He tilted her head up with his finger, kissing under her chin, his teeth grazing down her neck to her breasts leaving love bites in their path. He reached back up to capture her lips, his hands palming her breasts, and slipping in her bra. He straddled her hips, mindful of their little bundle of course, and gently slid inside of her. She gasped at the fullness, grabbing fist-full's of his hair and pulling him deeper into her mouth. When they came up for air, she kissed down his strong muscular arms and he rocked beneath her hips. He moaned loudly, picking up his pace and kissing down her small pregnant belly and swirling his tongue in and around her naval. Her back arched, feeling the familiar warmth spreading throughout her groin. He felt her muscles beginning to clamp down around him, pushing him to the brink, but not before biting hard into her neck.

The biting and sucking sensation threw them both into a mind blowing orgasm, crying each other's names and collapsing. As Elena basked in her post-coital glow, Damon crawled out of bed and fetched her a blood bag. She lay there for a while, Damon's words from earlier were ringing in her ears.

"Now that you're eighteen there's nothing stopping us…" He was right, she was eighteen now, so what was to stop her from doing anything? She had been home schooled the last four months by Alaric because she was scared of the things people would have to say about Damon while she was seventeen. But now…she was an adult, no one would say anything hurtful now that she was an adult right? That meant she could go back to school! She took the blood bag from Damon and took a long sip, glancing at the clock. If she wanted to go to school she had twenty minutes to get there.

"Thanks for breakfast Damon, but I need to get ready…I'm going back to school today." Damon's smile fell and his features twisted with worry.

"Don't leave me…I just got you all to myself." She caressed the side of his face and gave him a small smile.

"Don't you think Caroline and the other's deserve to know why I've been MIA the last four months? Besides, I need to finish senior year, that's important for every teenage girl." He sighed.

"You don't owe anyone an explanation. Elena, I don't want to see you get hurt. Not everyone is going to be understanding, and this pregnancy has made you a little sensitive." She tugged a sweater on and kissed him lightly.

"I'll be fine, Damon. Now come on, I'll be late." He reluctantly took her hand and pulled his boxers on, walking her out to the car and opening the door for her before clambering into the driver's seat. She eyed him curiously as he put the key into the ignition.

"No pants?" A ghost of a smile crept onto his face.

"Thought I'd leave you with an image of what you'll be missing while you're at school." He said with an arrogant shrug. She narrowed her eyes at him but he just smiled at her and continued toward Mystic High. When they pulled into the parking lot, Damon leaned over and gave Elena a scorching kiss.

"See you this afternoon, Mrs. Salvatore." Elena turned crimson.

"What brought that on? We aren't married yet." He smiled gently at her and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ears.

"I'm just practicing." She grinned from ear to ear.

"I love you. Good bye, Mr. Salvatore." He gave her butt a quick playful slap and handed her her bag. She yelped and leaned in for one more kiss.

"I love you too; now go to class before you're late."

Elena walked in to first period history with about five minutes to spare. She tried hard to ignore the gaping and gawking from most of the students and sat down beside Adriana and Bonnie. All eyes were on her, but she quickly forgot when Adriana nearly tackled her.

"Oh my god, Elena, you're glowing! I am so happy for you! Please tell me it's a little girl!" She gushed. Elena laughed.

"It's actually a little boy, we're naming him Ian." She lied, leaving out the part that his first name was technically Sebastian. She rubbed her tummy lovingly as she thought about Damon.

Your daddy would be so mad if he could hear me calling you that right now. She thought with a giggle. Bonnie beamed at Elena, actually looking genuinely happy for her.

"I've never seen you like this, Elena. I know Damon and I don't always see eye to eye, but if he makes you this happy, then congratulations." She grinned, pulling Bonnie into a hug. They look their seats and Elena engaged in a very animated conversation with the Bennett Twins about going baby shopping and about all the things she and Damon needed to do to prepare the nursery. Both Bonnie and Adriana were surprised when Elena gushed to them about her budding friendship with Katherine and how she hoped she'd accompany them shopping. By the time the bell had rung they'd made arrangements for the five of them to have a girl's day at the mall, accidently leaving out and forgetting about Caroline. That is…until a certain angry blonde tapped Elena hard on the shoulder. Adriana and Bonnie quieted immediately, and Elena turned slowly to see the most bewildered and pissed off expression on her face ever.

"Wow, Elena, isn't this a nice surprise? How many more ways can you rip Stefan's heart out? It's bad enough hearing about that leech growing inside you from him, but then to know that you gave up your epic love for an evil self serving psychopath with no redeeming qualities?! It makes me sick. Out of all the people to pass his mongrel genes along, it had to be a good person like you!" She ranted. Elena began to shake, her anger boiling in her blood. The entire classroom was silent, including Alaric who just looked at the two girls with his mouth open.

"Excuse me?! Damon is the love of my life, and if that bothers you then you can stay the hell out of it! As a matter of fact, he is the only one of my so called friends that even remembered that it was my birthday! Might I add that it makes no sense that you think Damon is a psychopath when you're talking to bunny killing, body ripping Stefan behind my back right now! Shouldn't surprise me though, you've always been a back stabbing whore, why change now, Caroline?" She spat, her screaming causing Caroline to back up against the wall. Her wide eyes brimmed with tears and her bottom lip began to quiver, making Elena feel bad. She was getting ready to apologize when a boy from the back of the classroom shouted "Ooh, looks like the fat cow is also a big fat bitch." The boy sitting beside of him smirked, looking Elena in the eyes before agreeing.

"Totally…I feel bad for the dude that's stuck with her; I always knew Gilbert couldn't keep it in her pants." The entire class burst into a fit of laughter and Elena bolted out of the room, sobs ripping through her chest. Damon was right…he was always right! Why didn't she listen to him? She ran to the nearest bathroom and locked the door, sinking to the ground in a corner and pulling out her phone. She quickly dialed Damon's number, not wanting to be stuck in the bathroom with her humiliation all day. Damon picked up on the first ring, suggesting that he'd been waiting anxiously by the phone in case anything was to happen. That made Elena feel a little better, knowing she could always count on him.

"Elena? Princess, what's wrong?" Elena couldn't find her voice, all she could do was weep into the receiver and hope he understood the message. He did. His voice suddenly became very urgent.

"I'm coming to get you, stay put." Damon drove quickly, scared out of his mind at the possibilities. He knew he shouldn't have let her come, he knew she was danger prone. He hoped there wasn't any danger, that she was only upset, but he couldn't be sure with the desperate way she'd been crying. The minute he arrived on campus he could sense her, their blood bond allowed him to pinpoint exactly where she was, he could feel it.

Discovering that the door was locked, her kicked it down with one swift motion and gathered her in his arms. He sank to the floor, holding her against his chest and running his fingers through her hair, waiting for her to calm down.

"Hush now, baby, everything is okay. Tell me what's wrong; which bastard did this to you?" He asked in a concerned whisper. She sniffled and looked up at him, his soothing words sinking in.

"Caroline called Ian a leech and you a psychopath…then two boys called me a fat cow and a bitch. You don't think I'm any of those things do you?" She asked in a broken whisper. Damon's body went rigid, his eyes growing cold and angry, his teeth clenching.

"Never. You stay here and don't move until I tell you too, understand?" For once, Elena didn't argue. Damon kissed her forehead and then stormed into Alaric's classroom where the students were still in hysterics. Damon just stood and listened for a moment, hearing people murmur things like "have you seen a bigger slut?" and "I bet it's Donovan's…" all talking about his Elena. He stalked over to Caroline, who was already crying from Elena's outburst.

"Now you've done it, Barbie. You've finally pushed me too far. If you want to think I'm a psychopath that's fine by me, but I will not have you harassing my fiancée because you have some sort of twisted loyalty to Stefan. And may I make an announcement to the class that Elena Gilbert isn't the one you should be calling a slut, Caroline climbed into bed with me the second I offered which was about ten minutes after we met, just like she does with all the guys she dates." He growled loudly, causing Caroline to whimper. Alaric came up behind Damon and put a hand on his shoulder to calm him down. Damon flinched away.

"Not now Ric, not when it comes to Elena. Now tell me, which two fuckers made her cry?" His voice was so icy that Alaric didn't dare withhold the information, his eyes darting to the two teenagers in the back of the classroom. Damon grabbed both boys up by their shirts and held them at eye level.

"Is that how you get your kicks? Making pregnant girls cry? If it is, do yourself a favor and find a different one to mess with, the Salvatore family is not a family you want to fuck with."

"S-She's not part of the Salvatore family." One boy choked out. Damon's grip on them tightened.

"Like hell she isn't part of the Salvatore family, she is carrying the Salvatore heir, whom might add will probably be head of the family by the time you have your own children, and which families run this town?"

"The founding families." The boy whispered.

"Then I'd be careful who I make enemies with." Damon hissed, dropping the boys on the ground and disappearing from the room. His anger dissipated as he walked back in the bathroom and once again gathered Elena in his arms, being careful as he stepped over the broken door and carried her down the hallway.

"I took care of it, Elena. You should listen to me more often." He scolded softly. She just nodded, a bit drowsy from all the crying.

"Is there anything I can do?" She looked up at him.

"What do you mean?" He smiled at the perplexed look on her face.

"To make you feel better?" Oh. Understanding washed over Elena's features and she smiled sweetly up at him.

"Play in the snow with me." Damon snorted.

"You want me to do what?" She grinned.

"My favorite thing about winter is snow ball fights and snow angels…please?" His lips twitched up into an amused smile.

"Maybe." It might not have sounded promising, but she could tell by the look on his face that she'd already won. She nuzzled him for the third time that day, curling up into an even smaller ball in his arms. She was surprised when she felt him lay her in a chair instead of in the passenger seat of his Camero. She blinked up at him and noticed they were in the office.

"A little compulsion is all it takes to make the principal think you're already my wife, and when he thinks that, I can legally pull you out of school. You don't need the stress, Elena, and neither does Sebastian. You can graduate with Alaric as your home school teacher or you cannot graduate at all. I'm not budging on this." He said firmly. Elena opened her mouth to protest, but Damon put his hand on her belly and rubbed. Immediately Sebastian started kicking again.

"He hasn't done that since this morning…" She said thoughtfully. Damon smirked.

"He's agreeing with me. He knows his daddy is trying to protect him." She looked into Damon's eyes and was silenced at what she saw there. Love, compassion, worry, stress, everything a father should feel at a time like this. Her heart melted and she knew she couldn't fight him on this.

"Okay." He smiled and kissed her forehead.

"Good girl." And then he walked into the principal's office without even knocking. Elena shook her head, amused by his audacity.

He emerged from the office five minutes later with a satisfied smirk. He offered Elena his and laced his fingers with hers as the couple walked to his car. They drove in a comfortable silence for a while before he turned to her and whispered "Snow angels?" She grinned and shook her head.

"Especially after that guilt trip you laid on me at the school, they better be damn good snow angels." He gasped playfully and feigned hurt, making her giggle. When they pulled into the driveway at the boarding house they realized that Meredith's car was in their spot. Damon cursed under his breath and had to park in Stefan's spot. They assumed she was here seeing Katherine, who had not seen a doctor yet her entire pregnancy. Elena smirked there was a nice white coat of snow in their lawn for them to play in. Damon shook his head in amusement and watched as she sat down in the snow and laid back.

"Come on, Damon!" She beckoned, sounding more carefree than he'd heard her in a long while. He grinned and laid down beside her, their hands still clasped together. Damon thought they were down there to make angels, and was totally caught off guard when she used her free hand to hurl snow at him. She got him right between the eyes.

"Oh it's on, missy." He chuckled, letting go of her hand and forming a snowball of his own. He made sure to aim well and to use the softest snow, and he hit her thigh. She ran from him, flinging snow balls at his chest and then hiding behind the tree in their yard. He nailed her on the arm with one and trapped her behind the tree, until she somehow slid under his arm and bolted for the other side near the car. Damon threw one last ball and got close enough to grab her wrist and pull her into a kiss. The couple was thrown off balance by the amount of forced used and came crashing to the ground. They landed on a soft patch of snow, her on top of him and they laid there for a few moments gazing at each other.

"God I love you." He said breathlessly. She rubbed her nose against his and giggled.

"I love you too." Damon wove his arms protectively around her and was about to pull her into another kiss when Katherine came running from the house.

"Elena! Elena!" She sat up.

"What is it?"

"I'm having a girl!" Katherine squealed.