Funny how the heart can be deceiving more than just a couple times.
Why do we fall in love so easy? Even when it's not right.
Where there is desire, there is gonna be a flame.
Where there is a flame, someone's bound to get burned.
But just because it burns doesn't mean you're gonna die.
You've gotta get up and try, and try, and try.
Gotta get up and try, and try, and try.
You gotta get up and try, and try, and try.
Try – Pink
Elena dropped her bag on the dining room table with a sigh, before her eyes widened. The little hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. She swallowed hard and whirled around.
Jenna was standing behind her, her arms crossed and her eyes bloodshot and puffy. Pink spots were developing on her cheeks. "So, you weren't at Caroline's. Where were you?" Jenna thundered. Elena swallowed thickly.
"I was…" Elena fumbled for a suitable lie. "I got a call from the school. You've missed almost two weeks of classes." Jenna continued, "Do you have any idea how worried I was? I didn't know if you'd run off with some guy or were lying dead in a gutter somewhere!"
Tears streamed down Jenna's face as her lip quivered. Elena looked down, blinking away gleaming tears. "I'm sorry." She whispered softly. With that, Elena turned and rushed upstairs.
She slipped into her room and pried her diary free from its hiding spot behind a painting. Elena brushed the dust off the smooth leather cover before opening it. She looked over her last entry.
It seems like it's been forever… Elena thought longingly before picking up a pen from her desk. Poising the pen above the page, Elena began to write:
12/21/12
Dear Diary,
It's been so long since I've written. I didn't mean to be gone so long. Everything's a mess. My feelings for Dean have spun so far out of control. Jenna's upset. Stefan's still barely talking to me. How'd things spiral out of control like this? I can't remember the last time that things felt normal. And I felt safe. I can't blame Sam and Dean for this feeling. They just opened my eyes to what was really out there. Stefan and Damon were the ones who exposed me to it. I don't know what else there is to say. Things are just out of whack. And crazy. All I can say is, I hope that things go back to normal soon…
Elena set her pen down, nibbling at her lower lip. As she traced invisible patterns over the page, she remembered…
"And here I am, feeling like an idiot!" Dean snapped, shaking his head, furious. "What're you talking about, Dean?" Elena replied breathlessly, astonished. "All this I was doing, did you not notice it at all?" Dean said sharply.
A sunset swept over Elena's cheeks as she lowered her amber optics, whispering, "Dean..." "I mean, what the hell was I trying for, anyway? You're with someone else now." Dean said over her murmur, his voice gruff.
Elena shook her head, turning away. "Dean, don't." She felt his hand resting on her shoulder. Warming her through her blouse. "Why not?" Dean said musingly. "Stefan." She replied. Elena felt him stiffen, resentment layering his words, "What about him?"
"I don't know, Dean." She whispered. She felt his hand grasp her hip gently. Dean turned her to face him; his hand cupped her cheek lightly. "Well, you're here with me, now." "Dean," Elena began as his thumb grazed over her lower lip.
He grasped her hand, placing it over his heart. Elena felt his heart beating rapidly as she drew in a soft breath. "It's yours, don't you see that?" Dean said softly, "It's always been yours." "Dean," Elena whispered again, a silent protest as Dean leaned forward, his nose brushing against hers before his lips touched hers.
Elena's thoughts short-circuited at the contact. Warmth raced through her. And thrills shot up her spine. Her body seemed to react on its own accord. Her arms snaked around his neck and her fingers weaved through his hair as her lips met his and returned his kiss passionately.
Everything seemed to be Dean Winchester. He was everywhere. And everything. Clarity washed through her mind. Dean was what she wanted. Dean was what she needed. He was the sunrise and the sunset. Soon, she lost contact of where Dean ended and she began. Elena melted into him.
She lost all will to resist him anymore. All she knew was want. Want for Dean. A craving that might never be sated. "Dean," She said breathlessly, breaking the kiss. Dean gazed into her eyes, his malachite orbs reflecting everything she felt.
Elena felt as though her limbs turned to jelly. "We can't." She whispered as she tried to disentangle her limbs from his. Dean sighed heavily as he pulled away from her. "Fine." Was all he said. The word cut Elena like a knife. She blinked back an onslaught of tears as she turned away.
"What're you doing?" a familiar voice said just above her ear. Elena started, whirling around to see Damon standing behind her. She'd hadn't seen him since the dance. When she kissed Dean.
She glanced at the page, where she'd written her latest entry. Before she could cover the page or close the diary, she saw Damon's eyes flicker over the entry. Reading it and memorizing it. Damn his vampire senses.
Elena snapped the book closed and said, "I'm writing, Damon. But, you knew that." Her ochre globes narrowed to thin slits. A smirk formed on the vampire's lips as he drawled, "Okay." "Lena!" Dean called up the stairs.
Elena sighed heavily, tossing her diary onto the desk. She cast Damon a dubious look before hurrying downstairs. Damon flickered across the room, pocketing the girl's diary before slipping out the window silently.
Elena scurried down the stairs, her ebony oculars falling on a small group, gathered in the living room. Sam and Dean were seated on the couch. And on the chair, a man in a dirty baseball cap was facing them.
But Elena knew that profile anywhere. "Bobby!" She all but screamed. The older man turned, a faint smile curving his lips. "Hello, 'Lena," He said. He pronounced her name, "Lane-er." Elena rushed across the room towards Bobby Singer.
The man who was like her second dad. She threw her arms around him, breathing in the familiar scent of whiskey and Old Spice. Elena drew in a shuddered breath as she allowed the scents take her back through her memories.
"You're leaving me where?" Elena asked scathingly, gazing up at Dean dangerously. Dean silently thanked whoever watched over Hunters that words couldn't literally harm someone. Because if that were the case, 'Lena's words would've skinned him alive.
"With a friend," Dean said slowly. "Right. A friend." Elena echoed, her tone harsh. "Look, Bobby can be trusted. Don't worry." "Don't worry?" Elena nearly shrieked. "Don't worry? I'll worry if I damn well please!" Dean sighed heavily, shaking his head.
"Fine. Just stay with him a few minutes and if you're still worried about it, call me and I'll come get you." His words were laced with the tone a parent uses to soothe a fussing child. "Don't patronize me, Dean." Elena hissed, turning away.
"Fine," Dean snapped, throwing his hands into the air. They drove all night to South Dakota. Elena curled up in the passenger seat. She shook her head as she gazed out the window. Dean and Sam were hot on the trail of a wendigo. Or they were, until they realized that Elena couldn't go with them.
So, they decided to leave her with a friend of theirs. Bobby Singer. A man she'd never heard of until recently. She sighed, resigning herself over to fate. She couldn't believe it. Dean stopped the car and climbed out of the driver's seat. Elena begrudgingly followed him.
They walked towards the house, weaving their way through the broken-down vehicles that littered the yard. "See, this is why we have global warming," Elena muttered to herself angrily. Finally, after they zigzagged through the labyrinth, they stood at the front door.
Dean rapped on the door urgently. And after a few moments, the door opened and an older man, with salt-and-pepper hair and a beard, stood in front of them. "Dean," He said, surprise layering his tone. "What're you doing here?" "Hey, Bobby," Dean said warmly.
Moments later, Elena sat on the moth-eaten couch, sighing dejectedly. "Dean and Sam will be okay," Bobby said, offering her a mug. "It'll help with the nerves." He nodded, stepping around the couch and walking towards his desk.
Elena cast a distrusting glance into the mug. It filled with hot cocoa. The kind with the little marshmallows. Elena bit her lip on a laugh and shook her head, "How do you know Sam and Dean?" She asked. "I knew their daddy. He and I worked together," Bobby said simply.
"You both hunted together?" She whispered tentatively, her honey tinted hues widening as Bobby choked on his whiskey, coughing. "What?" He croaked. "How do you know about hunting?" He began then he shook his head, "No. Wait. I don't wanna know. Dean told you, didn't he?"
Elena looked away, shame tinting her features. "He did." She whispered. "Of course he did," Bobby said with a huff. "What does that mean?" Elena said, whirling to face Bobby. "It means; he's in love with you. Any fool can see that."
A flush swept over Elena's cheeks. "He is?" She asked timidly. "He is," Bobby said with a nod. "You know him and Sam very well, don't you?" Elena whispered, looking into her mug. "I do. Almost as well as their daddy did."
Elena brought the mug to her lips, taking a small sip of the warm, sweet liquid. "And trust me, I can tell you some stories." Bobby said; his lip quirking slightly. Amusement glimmered in Elena's tawny spheres, "Then, please, do."