AN: Thanks for the reviews :) You have no idea how happy they make me. Once again, it picks up from where it left off last chapter. Enjoy :)
Alexia
Elena woke up to the smell of eggs and bacon being fried. She looked over to the other side of the bed and saw Caroline still snoring in the exact same position she fell asleep last night. She glanced at her alarm clock on her bedside table: 1pm. Elena took a quick shower and put on a denim shorts and a purple tank top. She got downstairs and was about to say good morning to Jeremy when she spotted him sprawled out on the couch. Her brows furrowed as she was wondering who else could be in the kitchen. It was definitely not Aunt Jenna since she wasn't even in Mystic Falls or planning on coming. Alaric wasn't the one to cook eggs and bacon in the afternoon, he would have insisted on a more lunch-like meal. Elena's mind remained blank as she racked her brain to figure out who was up already. She entered the kitchen and saw someone at the sink. His back was to her and all she saw was a strongly built tanned bare back, dirty blond hair and muscular arm.
"Morning Elena," Stefan said without turning around. He just knew it was her from the tingly sensation his stomach had since he heard someone coming downstairs. Only Elena was able to do that to him from a distance. Caroline gave him that same tingly sensation, but only when they were in close proximity. Elena had a hard time taking her eyes off of him. She swallowed hard before going to the fridge.
"Morning to you too," she said while keeping her head inside the fridge. She couldn't look at him without staring.
"Juice is in the fridge, coffee is in the machine, toasts are in the toaster and I'm just getting some eggs and bacon done. Make yourself feel at home," he said and finally turned around to face her. "I just hope you weren't planning on using those eggs or bacon for something else." Elena laughed out loud and shook her head no. Her eyes quickly scanned his body. His torso seemed as hard as rock and his abs looked as though they were sculpted. 'Greek God' she thought to herself before realizing that Stefan was waiting for her to say something.
"Am I not supposed to be the one telling you to feel at home?"
"Well, given the situation, I've slept in this house more than you have since the beginning of the summer. So, to answer your question, no, the roles aren't meant to be reversed." Elena couldn't stop a smile from forming. Stefan wasn't wrong, he had slept over about four times while she had slept only twice in her own house.
"Point proven," she answered and stared into his green eyes. This time, she didn't look away and neither did he. They felt as though they were anywhere but in Elena's kitchen, as if they were in a world only they could exist in.
"Morning you guys," came Caroline's cheerful voice from the doorway. Stefan looked away and went back to the sink showing his back to both girls.
"Morning Care," Elena said with half of Caroline's cheerfulness. Caroline quickly kissed Elena's cheek and then skipped to where Stefan was standing. She snaked her arms around his waist and hugged him from behind. Elena could see a smile forming onto his lips and her eyes started to prick. Caroline placed a delicate kiss on his back and then gently grazed at his sides with her fingernails. Elena could see goosebumps on Stefan's skin and he discretely shuddered.
"I'm going to go wake Jer up. He hasn't even gone out yesterday and he's sleeping more than most of us," quickly said Elena while getting up from her seat and walking towards the living room. Her heart had clenched up when she saw Caroline's interactions with Stefan and it pained her to see that he was enjoying it. She remembered her conversation with him last night; she had told him that they were adorable together. She half meant it- they were adorable together, but not as a couple, just as best friends. She also remembered Stefan telling her that he was attracted to Caroline, but something unknown was stopping him. Elena took a deep breath and pushed the thought aside. She didn't want to live in drama since the very start of the summer, besides no one knew how she felt about Stefan, except maybe for Damon. Jeremy was half awake when Elena went to see him on the couch. Elena gently shook his shoulder and he moaned as a sign that he was awake. Fifteen minutes later, Jeremy woke up and made his way to the bathroom. He came back downstairs, helped himself with some eggs and bacon and then sat on the kitchen island with Caroline, Elena and Stefan.
"How was last night?" he asked.
"Fabulous," replied Caroline with a wide grin. Elena smiled, she remembered that Caroline was on the dancefloor throughout the entire night and left only to use the bathroom or for a drink.
"It was a good first night. I missed you though," Elena answered her brother.
"How about you Stefan? And I hope you slept well in my awesome room," said Jeremy and squinted his eyes trying to pull out a mean face. Stefan chuckled out loud.
"Last night was a good night, but like Elena said, you were missed. Concerning your room," Stefan paused slightly ,"perfect. I was the lucky one and called dibs for your bed and I'll confirm, it's a really comfortable one. Thanks Jer."
"Yeah, of course. Don't worry about it," answered the youngest Gilbert sympathetically.
All four of them stayed silent while they were digging into the breakfast that Stefan had prepared when they heard muffled voices from upstairs. Soon enough, Matt and Tyler appeared in the kitchen obviously delighted by the smell of eggs, toasts and bacon that had invaded the entire house by now. They all squeezed in around the island and continued eating until the doorbell rang. Elena was puzzled for a while and had no clue who it was at the door. She laughed slightly as that was the same reaction she had when she was wondering who was in the kitchen. She opened the door and was face to face with Damon.
"Morning," she said with a large smile on her face. Damon was always able to do that; make her smile by just being there.
"More like Afternoon," he answered and pecked her cheek before hugging her tightly. Even though they saw each other yesterday, it still felt like too long. That was one thing about their relationship that no one understood, whenever they saw each other, it was like it was for the first time. Some people were jealous of their relationship because they didn't have a friend like that and they wished they did. He walked inside and spotted the group crammed in the kitchen and couldn't help himself but ask, "Why are you all squishing yourself around the kitchen island when there's a dining table right there," he pointed to the table on his right with an exasperated look.
"Easier access to the food," answered Stefan and then winked at Elena who was standing behind Damon. Elena didn't take it personally, she noticed he did that all the time and to everyone.
"Want to join us for breakfast?" Caroline asked.
"I'm good, thanks. I actually just had lunch," he replied and emphasized on the work 'lunch'. The group chuckled at Damon's exasperations. "I just thought I'd come because I know things are about to go down. Seriously, six friends in a house, yes Jeremy, that includes you too, calls for something epic to happen."
"Alright, who' ready for round two tonight?" asked Tyler.
"THAT'S what I'm talking about. I knew I liked you for a reason," Damon answered in a heartbeat. His voice was full of excitement. Elena just shook her head and smiled slightly. She had forgotten how much of a party-animal Damon was.
"I've got it all figured out. Dinner here tonight and then we head out to that crazy nightclub we went to last night. You guys need to admit it, it was epic," said Caroline in one go.
"I'm with Caroline on this one," answered both Salvatore brothers at the same time.
'Sounds like a plan," chirped in Matt. Tyler nodded in agreement. Elena's jaw had dropped since Tyler mentioned round 2. She was still trying to recover from the previous night and here they were already discussing the plans for tonight,
"Come on, Elena," said Caroline who spotted her best friend's reaction. "It's summer. What better ways to spend it than with your friends?"
"Jer, you in on this?" Elena asked.
"Am I in? Of course I'm in," replied Jeremy with a huge smile on his face. "I wouldn't miss it for the world," he added. Elena looked at him questioningly, what wouldn't he miss for the world she thought to herself. She then saw Caroline and Matt throwing daggers at him with their looks.
"Okay, what am I missing?" asked the brunette, certain that something was up. She didn't like the feeling of being surrounded by people who knew something that she didn't.
"What? What are you talking about? You're not missing anything," replied Matt quickly, too quickly for Elena's liking.
"Stefan?" she asked hoping that he was at least on her side.
"I would help you but I'm just as clueless, " he answered with an apologetic look. "I need to head out, buy some food for tonight," he stated.
"Tonight?" asked Elena.
"Weren't you listening to anything we were saying? We're having dinner here and then going back to 'Dance Forever' or whatever it's called," replied Caroline. "But don't worry Lena, we have this under control. All you need to do is enjoy your day and we'll take care of the rest," replied Caroline with so much enthusiasm in her voice. That was one of her personality traits that Elena absolutely loved. Whatever the situation, you know you can count on Caroline for a comforting look or gesture. Stefan started walking towards the door when Caroline called after him, "Stefan, do you want me to come with you?"
"I'd love that," he answered with a small smile at the corner of his lips. Caroline linked her arm with Stefan's and they both headed out the front door. Elena's mouth twitched without her meaning to do it. She turned around and her eyes locked with Damon's piercing blue ones. She mouthed 'What?' to him only to see him shake his head and mouth back 'Nothing'. She arched her eyebrows questioning him but he just pursed his lips, shook his head again and shrugged. An hour later Stefan came back but he was alone. It was about 3 in the afternoon by then.
"Caroline had something to do. She'll be back later, like around 6 or something," explained Stefan.
"What is she doing that's going to take her 3 hours?" asked Elena.
"It's Caroline. She's usually the only one who knows her actual plan. I asked her multiple times but she kept saying it was personal. What is it that's so personal that she wouldn't even tell me? Me, out of all people, she should be able to trust me," stated Stefan. Elena's mouth twitched once again and she wrinkled her nose as if trying to stop her emotions from showing. Damon had seen all of that from across the room. He knew that Elena wasn't thrilled with the idea of Stefan and Caroline. Elena turned in his direction and he nodded towards the front door. She smiled tightly before following him outside. She immediately knew what this was going to be about but she also knew that she could talk about it to Damon. He sat down on the porch steps and Elena sat right next to him. Damon wrapped his arm around her shoulder.
"You want to talk about it?" he gently asked.
"There's nothing to talk about," replied Elena with something close to regret in her voice. "It's done."
Damon sighed and rubbed her arm up and down to show her that he was there no matter what. He loved the fact that neither of them actually said what they were talking about they both knew.
"Nothing is done Lena," he reassured her. "Yes, it seems as though they both want something to happen-" he stopped mid-sentence because of Elena's daggering look. "I'm sorry, I know it's not the best way to start a comforting speech but I'm not done yet. So yes, it seems as though they both want something to happen but it's when they're going to be together that he's going to realize that he threw away a diamond to settle for a rock."
"Easy there. Caroline is my best friend, don't criticize her like that."
"I'm not criticizing. I love Caroline, she's great but you're greater. You're also my best friend Lena and I want you to be happy. I hate the fact that you're hurting because of my little brother."
"Hey, if they find happiness in each other then be it. If they're happy; I'm happy. And just a quick by the way, he didn't throw away a diamond since he wasn't holding it in the first place."
"I know what happened last summer Lena, he told me. I also know that no one else knows except probably for Elijah," said Damon. Elena smiled at the sound of his name. It's been only a couple of days that she's last seen him but it felt like months. He was coming in another 4 days and she was more than excited to see him again, she missed him terribly.
"Does Caroline know anything?" she asked. Damon was about to answer when they heard the front door open. They turned around and saw Stefan leaning against the doorframe smiling down at them.
"We're going to watch a movie in the living room if you guys would like to come join," he proposed. He didn't wait for an answer before turning back around and heading inside the house.
"We should probably go join them inside," suggested Damon. "And to answer your question, no, Caroline doesn't know. Like I told you, the people who knows what happened last summer are Elijah, Stefan, you and I, that's it." Elena nodded slightly and walked inside the house to join everyone in the living room. Tyler, Matt and Jeremy were all sitting on one couch while Stefan was sitting alone on the other. Damon and Elena sat next to him, the girl in the middle. Jeremy had picked the movie and it was The Hunger Games. It was a perfect fit for everyone's liking: lots of action and killing for the boys and a slight bit of romance for Elena to also appreciate the movie. She was a sucker for romance. Barely 15 minutes into the movie and Elena's eyes started to be heavier than usual. She hadn't realized how tired she really was until she sat down on the couch. She rested her head on the back of the couch and in a matter of seconds she had passed out. A couple of hours later, Elena jerked awake and realized that she was no longer sitting on the couch, but lying on it. Her head was in Stefan's lap and her legs on Damon's. She smiled lightly and then looked around to see that everybody had fallen asleep as well. The credits were just about to finish scrolling on the screen and Elena smiled at the thought that no one actually finished the movie.
"Easy there," she heard Stefan murmur with a light chuckle in his voice. She placed her head back in his lap and looked up to see his head resting on the couch and his eyes closed.
"Sorry," she answered and then slowly got up from the couch and gently ruffled Damon's hair before heading into the kitchen. It was 6pm already so she decided to have some tea even though it was slightly late. She prepared enough tea for everyone when they woke up. Caroline was meant to come back soon but there was no sign of her, not even a text message. A few minutes later, the boys slowly started to immerge from their nap. Once again, they all crammed around the kitchen island and drank their tea. They were talking about nothing in specific, just friendly chitchat. Elena sat on the kitchen counter by the sink and Damon came next to her and leaned against the counter.
"How did I end up lying on you?" she asked him, still confused as to how she ended up in that position.
"Stefan and I realized how tired you were and so we wanted you to have a good sleep. I took your legs and he took your head and from the look of your face, you slept like a baby."
"You have no idea," she said and giggled slightly. "Thanks Damon." He nodded his head in appreciation. "Hey Stefan, thanks for letting me sleep on you," she called out.
"You're more than welcome Lena," he answered and just like his brother, he nodded his head slightly.
The hour was nearing 7pm when there was an urgent knock on the door. Elena jumped down the kitchen counter hoping that it was Caroline because she was getting worried as she was meant to be back an hour ago. She eagerly opened the door and almost collided with Elijah. Elena let out a loud gasp and her jaw dropped.
"What are you doing here?" she asked and jumped into his arms. "You were meant to come next week."
"I know, but I just felt like I was missing out on a lot already so I came early. Luckily you have a friend like Caroline who organized everything and came to pick me up at the airport." That's when Elena spotted Caroline a couple of steps behind Elijah smiling widely. Her entire face was illuminated with joy.
"Thank you Care," Elena said while stepping outside and hugging Caroline tightly. All of a sudden, everything made sense: why she was throwing daggers at Jeremy when talking about tonight, using Stefan as an excuse to get out of the house and why she had 'personal' stuff do to. Elena heard Damon and Stefan asking what the noise was all about. As they stepped outside and saw Elijah, Damon was the first one to make a move. He gave a manly hug to Elijah and pat his back and Stefan followed but with less eagerness. Damon and Elijah have been friends for a long time and they've always gotten along well. Stefan and Elijah used to be close, but when he moved to Europe their relationship faded slightly. Matt, Tyler and Jeremy knew about the surprise but they were still overjoyed to see the newcomer again after a long year.
"I'm sorry I took so long," apologized Caroline. "His plane got delayed and then we had to go to his house to do I don't know what. Oh yeah, he insisted on unpacking, so he did it in record time. Then he packed a bag to come over. Elena, he's sleeping over," she continued. Elena laughed and nodded.
"Can I sleep over too? I feel slightly excluded now," Damon asked.
"Of course you can Damon," she replied.
"Woah, full house tonight," said Jeremy overjoyed. "However guys, this time I'm sleeping in my bed." All the guys laughed.
The evening went by quickly. Just like Caroline had promised, everyone was preparing various stuff and all Elena had to do was relax. So she sat down with Elijah on the couch in the living room and they talked as if they hadn't seen each other in forever. Damon joined them and the three of them kept on talking while the rest were preparing dinner. Once they had dinner Bonnie, Meredith and Rebekah came over to join them. This time however, they didn't waste anytime in going to 'Dance Forever'. They all wanted to make the most out of it since it was a great nightclub.
"'Dance Forever', seriously?" said Elijah when Rebekah told him the name of it.
"Dude, we had the same reaction last night when we saw it," said Damon. "But don't underestimate it. That club is beyond the normal level of amazing. Trust me on this one." Elijah chuckled at Damon's passion for the club.
They all headed out and once again, the entire group was blown away by how the club was. It was rather simple if you thought about it, but it worked well, with the bars and bathrooms on both floors. The main dancefloor on the first floor, it was all well thought of. The newest songs kept on playing one after the other and Elena knew that those would be her summer songs this year. She was on the dancefloor non-stop with Elijah, Damon, Bonnie and occasionally with Meredith. She saw glimpse of Stefan throughout the night, but she couldn't help the feeling that he was ignoring her and she didn't understand why. Caroline all of a sudden appeared in front of Elena with a big smile.
"I haven't seen you at all. What's up?" Elena asked with her brows furrowed.
"Stefan and I kissed!" she squealed and her smile widened. Elena instantly felt all of her dinner move back up to her throat. She swallowed hard and forced a smile. She then hugged Caroline before she could see that something was wrong.
"I'm happy if you're happy Care," she said. Those were the exact words that she had said to Damon that afternoon. She meant it though, if they found happiness with each other, Elena was happy, at least that's what she told herself. Elena let go of her best friend and headed to the bar. She eventually made her way upstairs. She wanted to be alone and not have music blasting through her ears. Upstairs, the music was still loud, but not as loud as on the first floor. Elijah soon joined her with a drink. He handed it over to her and they started talking.
"Definitely a good club," he stated while looking around. She was glad that he came up, at least he would distract her from what was really bothering her.
"It's crazy! We came here last night as well and it was just as epic. Maybe a little less, since you weren't there," she said with a smile.
"Awww, you don't need me to have a good time Lena," he replied.
"I know, but you just make the night worthwhile. I like when you go out here in Mystic Falls. I don't know an enormous amount of people here while the rest of the group does. So when you go out, I know that I can come talk to you anytime, I know that there's definitely someone that I know." Elijah smiled and hugged Elena.
"I missed you too Lena," he answered and then let go of the hug.
"Mind if I join?" they heard Stefan ask behind them. Suddenly she paid attention to the song that was playing and she realized that it was "Save the World" by Swedish House Mafia. She wondered whether Stefan came here on purpose or whether it was just a coincidence. Stefan stepped closer to Elena and wrapped an arm around her shoulder while she wrapped an arm around his waist. They started swaying side by side to the beat of the music. Elijah saw all of this and couldn't help smile. They were cute together and he still didn't understand how Stefan went to Caroline right after Elena. The song eventually ended and it was already a complete different song playing- the magic of a DJ. Stefan turned around to face Elena and hugged her. He bent his head so that he could whisper to her.
"I hooked up with Caroline," he said. Elena cringed in his embrace but he mistook it. He thought that she hugged him tighter because she was happy for them.
"Why did you wait before telling me? Why not tell me since you got upstairs?" she couldn't help ask.
Stefan paused for a while before answering, "'Save the World' was playing and it reminds me of you. I want that song to be kept as a memory of you and not bring someone else into it," he said with complete honesty.
"Thanks for telling me," she said because she truly was thankful. She was glad to know that he was willing to share that with her and not do the opposite, hide it.
"What happened to that something that was blocking you from moving ahead in your relationship with her?"
"Well, I figured that if I didn't do anything now, I might regret it. So if that something is truly better than what I share with Caroline, I'm sure that I'll figure it out. I think I need to be with Caroline in order to figure out what that something is. Am I even making an sense?" he chuckled slightly.
"Yeah, yeah you are, kind of," she replied.
He tightened his arms around her waist before letting go. He looked into her eyes and he thought he would have seen happiness and joy, but instead he saw her brown eyes covered by a thick layer of water and showed no other emotions than sadness. He held her face in his hands and desperately tried to search for something other than sadness in her eyes but he couldn't find anything and she would refuse to look at his face. The first tear escaped her eye and she wished that she were anywhere else but here. She wasn't meant to cry, not like that.
"No, no no," he said while wiping her tears with his thumb.
"It's okay, I'll be fine," she said while trying to smile. "I'll be fine," she repeated as she removed his hands from her face with her own hands. She turned around and headed back downstairs. She found Damon sitting there. She ordered two beers, one for him and one for herself.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"Drinking my night away," she answered. Damon didn't bother asking for the reason because he already knew. He actually saw it happen, he was slightly disappointed, but mostly he was sad for Elena because he knew that she would be crushed when she found out.
"I'm with you on this one," he said as he lifted his beer slightly. Elena clinked it with her own before taking a long gulp.
AN: Please don't hate me, but it had to happen. Don't worry, I'm a Stelena fan so don't despair :P Let me know what you thought of the chapter or the story overall. I would also like to know what you think of Damon and Elena's relationship: is it too much, or is it alright? I just want them to be friends that will look out for each other no matter what. Final thing: the pace of the story: too slow or does the pace not bother you?
Thanks again :)