Thank you for following/ favoriting.

NOVEMBER 2013

Elena and Stefan hadn't spoken a word to each other since their breakup. It had been two weeks and they were still at the point where they avoided each other. Well, he was avoiding her, she was too busy crying her heart out and trying to make sense of his decision. Actually, she had given up on the last part.

She just didn't understand; she couldn't understand. He loved her, she loved him… Them, together, as one… there was nothing better!

'Your feelings for Damon' his words resounded in her head like a broken record. 'What feelings for Damon?' she asked herself emotionally exhausted. She had none. How was she supposed to say it? What language was she supposed to use for him to hear her?

She wasn't going to lie: Damon was someone important for her, someone whose feelings mattered… She would do almost anything for him; she cared about Damon, deeply. But that was it! There was nothing more.

Why didn't he get that? Why didn't he understand that he was the only one she loved? The only one she could imagine herself being in love with…? He was simply the one for her.

After everything that they had been through… how come he didn't know how much he meant to her? Because clearly he had no idea, because if he did… She sighed letting more tears roll down her cheeks, and she buried herself in her tears-wet bed. If he did, he would not be doing this to her. He would not be shattering their love story into pieces…

"Stefan!" Klaus was surprised to see the younger Salvatore standing at his door.

The latter greeted him with an emotionless face.

"What are you doing here?" Klaus asked him. "My sister's heart is nowhere to be broken." He asserted.

Stefan scoffed. "Oh please." He snorted and entered the Mikaelson mansion passing by its owner without having been invited. "You care about Rebekah's feelings just about as much as I do." He said on his way.

Klaus heaved a sigh and closed the door. He turned to Stefan. "To what do I owe the displeasure?" he asked.

"You really need to re-examine your way to greet people, Klaus." Stefan let him know.

The jet black haired man headed for the living room with Klaus behind him, reluctantly following him. He noticed suitcases by the staircase. "You going somewhere?" he inquired. "Or somebody's moving in?" He turned back to the hybrid.

"Not that it's any of your business, but yes, I am going somewhere." The latter responded.

"New Orleans?" Stefan took a guess.

Klaus nodded.

"But you just came back." Stefan noted.

"True."

There was a moment of silence as neither said anything more.

"You didn't come here to ask for my schedule, did you?" Klaus asked.

The Salvatore man turned around and walked towards the fabric couch where he sat. "I did, as a matter of fact."

He looked up at Klaus who was still standing before him at the living room's entry. "I am leaving town." He announced.

Yep, that's right. Stefan was leaving town.

It was a long thought decision upon which he had dwelled. He had weighed the pros and the cons and pretty fast, the cons had prevailed over the pros. He had no reason to stay anymore. Elena was what brought him back in Mystic Falls in the first place: he wanted to start a life with her… And now that that had gone sideways, well… what reason did he have to remain in this town?

There was just one assurance he needed before he could leave.

"Are you now?" he inquired. "And you're leaving your so precious Elena behind you?" he was surprised, his brows wrinkled. "Oh my…" he raised his hand and covered his mouth with it. He shook his head lightly. "There wouldn't be trouble in paradise, would it?" he inquired quite derisively.

Stefan merely stared at the wall before him, an impassive expression on his face.

"Please tell me Elena didn't pick Damon in the end otherwise, I really will be left with no doubt concerning the fact that the girl truly has no ounce of intelligence." He commented and let out a mocking laugh as he looked away.

"That's enough!" Stefan spoke his limits having been reached, causing Klaus to stay still. "I did not come to hear you criticize Elena or discuss her love life with you." He said in a calmer voice and lower tone.

'Since you're not a part of it anymore...' Klaus thought to himself. However, as he looked back at Stefan and caught the deathly glare that was directed to him, he guessed he thought a little too loud. He raised his hand in surrender.

He turned around and went to his bar in order to serve himself and Stefan a glass of scotch. "So why exactly are you here?" Klaus asked again. He went over the couch and handed the Salvatore his glass. "You mentioned something about it being related to my schedule?"

"Thank you." The latter acknowledged taking the glass. "Yes, it is. I would appreciate it if you kept Elena off your schedule while I'm gone." He asked. "And even after that if possible." He added.

Klaus stared at Stefan for a short while. "Very well." He ended up saying.

"Excuse me?" Stefan asked. Had he just heard what he had just heard?

"Were you hoping for a different answer?" Klaus asked back.

"No, but…"

"Okay, everything's good then." The hybrid concluded.

"I guess so." Stefan said slightly perplexed, his brows creased and his state of doubt evident in his voice. "Thank you."

Klaus put down his drink and looked up at his guest. He raised his head too. "If I were you, I would leave now." He paused. "I'm about ten seconds away from changing my mind." He warned.

Stefan emptied his glass and then put it down. "Thank you." He acknowledged again whether it was for the drink or his acceptance to leave Elena be.

He stood up and walked towards the door. He was about to exit the room when Klaus' voice stopped him.

"Stefan…"

He turned around but stayed silent waiting for the Mikaelson to speak.

"How do you do it?" the latter inquired.

Stefan shook his head in incomprehension so Klaus stood up and approached him before he elaborated. "How can you walk away from her all the while knowing that she's the only one for you in this whole world?" he asked. "Where do you find that strength?"

Stefan examined Klaus' expression warily as well as the emotion dissimulated in his voice: if they were any indication, Klaus was genuinely interested by his answer.

Perhaps, he had underestimated the hybrid's feelings for his best friend. Perhaps, there were genuine feelings there… How did it matter anyway? She was far and he was headed for New Orleans again. It wasn't like they would see each other the day after.

"It's called love." He answered simply but without judgment, without any kind of insinuation. "When you… love someone… truly, madly, deeply…" Stefan explained lost in his thoughts. "…you know when to let go… you know when to put the person's happiness before your own." He finished and looked at Klaus after a few seconds.

The latter stared at him a moment and nodded slowly. "Let go…" he repeated as Stefan's words sank in his head, a bit as though he was asking an unasked question.

"That's what you did with Caroline." reminded the Salvatore and he couldn't help but notice how Klaus' jaw tightened at his best friend's mention.

"Well, I didn't really have a say in the matter." He replied causing Stefan to frown lightly.

'You respected her wishes anyway.' Stefan was tempted to say. But he didn't: there was already enough tension in the room and this conversation had already reached a genuinely awkward level of depth. "I have to go." He chose to say instead. "Thanks again." He acknowledged and headed for the entry's door.

"No." Klaus' voice resounded in the room and stopped Stefan. "Thank you."

Stefan turned his head to him: he had a serious and (Stefan would have said) sincere expression on his face.

Stefan nodded and ran out of that place without even trying to know what for! He had his opinion however.

This was it.

Stefan was officially and definitively done with Mystic Falls –that is to say for a certain long period of time, not forever a part of him dared to hope.

He had talked to Klaus; the Original had agreed not to use Elena as his personal disposable source of blood anymore. Therefore, her safety was ensured, at least as far as the Original Hybrid was concerned; as for the rest, he trusted his brother.

In a word, he was out of excuses to remain in town.

He had put an end to his relationship with Elena setting forth her feelings for his brother; and for all he thought that it was necessary for the lady to explore those feelings, he didn't care to be around when she did. Imagining it would be painful enough, there was really no need to witness it.

He was giving up so much for her, for her happiness on the long haul. She may not realize it now but he was doing this for her –and them in a way too. She couldn't know what she wanted until she explored all her options and they couldn't be happy together, not in all the extent of the word, when she had this giant 'What if?' over her head and he was aware of it; he needed for her to be fully sure of herself, to be fully sure of her choice. They had overcome so much… He could only hope that they would eventually find their way to each other once again and come out on top.

As the saying goes, if you love somebody, let them go, for if they return, they were always yours. If they don't…

As devastating as the whole situation was, at least he knew his brother would finally have the girl and therefore experience happiness and… well, he wasn't unhappy for him.

Stefan had just finished loading his SUV with his luggage when Damon and Rebekah came out from the house. Recently, those two had… well, they had gotten closer… Let's say that like that, not to say that they were attached to the hip from now on. They had become bedmates or friends with benefits or whatever they wanted to call it.

He closed the boot as they stepped out towards him.

"So you're really leaving?" Damon realized more than he asked.

"I am."

Damon nodded. "Are you sure about this?"

"As sure as I'll be." Stefan responded and his brother merely stared at him.

The poor Damon was completely clueless as to what had happened between Elena and Stefan to lead his brother to leave town so abruptly.

"Uh… I'll just be… inside." Rebekah announced gesturing towards the house. She figured the two bros could use a moment just the two of them to say goodbye properly –or in their own…Salvatore brothers' way. "You take care of yourself, Stefan." She told him and turned heading for the entrance.

"Yeah, you too." He told her in return before she entered the house.

After the blonde left, there was a long moment of intense silence between the two brothers.

"Where are you going?" Damon inquired breaking the silence.

"I haven't decided yet." Stefan answered. "I'll go to California, but I don't think I will stay there very long."

Damon nodded. "Does Elena know you're leaving?" he asked.

Stefan looked down at that question. "No, that's a conversation I have yet to have."

An awkward silence settled between them again. A second Stefan thought about asking Damon to look out for Elena. But he didn't because he knew he didn't have to: Damon loved Elena as much as he did; obviously, he would watch after her and keep her safe, just like he always had.

"I know… that we don't say this very often." Stefan started rather hesitantly. "But I…"

"I know." Damon cut him off getting where he was going. "Me too." He said simply.

Like most of the time, in important moments, the two brothers got each other and actually said it better by saying less.

They took the few steps separating them and bro-hugged each other.

"Give news." Damon said pulling away.

"I will." Stefan promised.

Stefan parked at the middle of Wickery Bridge. He got out of his car and approached her: she was standing right in front of the bridge staring at the canal deep in her thoughts. She sensed him approaching though, but didn't turn around.

"How did you know where to find me?" she asked him.

Stefan advanced till he was standing right behind her. "I know you." He simply responded.

Elena turned her head and looked at Stefan from above her shoulder. "You sure do." She confirmed. "Better than anyone." She added heartfelt. Elena truly felt like there was no one on earth who knew her nearly as well as Stefan, not even Jeremy –sometimes, she actually felt like… he knew her better than she knew herself, which is why it was so heartbreaking to respect his choice and to let him go.

Stefan chose to remain silent and didn't reply. Whatever he said wouldn't ease things between them at this point. The weirdest part was despite them having broken up; there was still an undeniable familiarity between Stefan and Elena.

"Why were you looking for me?" she inquired.

"I uh, I had something to say to you." He responded.

"I'm listening."

Stefan opened his mouth but then snapped it shut. He had absolutely no idea how to say this. It was as though he was reliving their breakup, only on a whole other level, and the words just wouldn't come out.

He took a deep breath. "This isn't going to be easy." He warned.

She stared at him and then made her eyebrows have a rise and fall motion in response. "Nothing seems… easy lately." She commented.

"Indeed." He agreed with a nod. He paused and looked at her contemplating the waterway. "You do know this hurts me as much as it does you?" he made sure. It was important for him that she knew that they were sharing this pain, that they were going through it together –like all the rest.

Elena simply nodded not trusting her voice to speak, trying to hold back her tears. Every time she saw Stefan's face lately or even thought of him, she would find it very hard not to cry.

"Elena, I, I've really thought about it and uh…" he was turning it over inside his head in all the directions but he just couldn't find the words… or they wouldn't come out: they were stuck in his throat. He sighed inwardly. "I'm leaving town." The words escaped his mouth much more abruptly than he intended them to.

Elena's eyes snapped at him and he briefly closed his eyes in reaction to his own indelicacy. He reluctantly looked back at her. "Excuse me?" she asked him to repeat not sure if she had caught that right.

"It's what's best." He told her.

'Huh?' She stared at him in disbelief, agape, utterly taken aback. 'Huh? What?!' Her mind couldn't quite function.

"What?" She expressed her thoughts. "What are you saying? What are you?" Stefan closed his eyes painfully at her obvious hurt and confusion. "For whom?!" she yelled at him.

"Elena, this…" he attempted to explain but she wouldn't let him.

"Is not what is best!" she finished for him. "Stefan, you can't just…" she paused as tears laced into her voice and started to blur her vision. "Have you even thought about it?!" she exclaimed her eyes widened.

"Of course I have!" he yelled back at Elena. "What do you think? That this is easy for me?!" he questioned her. Why was she making things so difficult? Didn't she realize how hard this was already on him? "Hurting you, walking away from you, this is killing me!" he told her, his voice on the verge of breaking.

"We have been through this already, Elena. We've done this. We have talked about this; we have had this discussion."

"No." Elena cut him off. "There was no discussion! Stefan. You broke up with me! Period! You didn't ask me for my opinion, and you still aren't." She reminded.

Further to her outburst, Stefan just looked away: he was honestly out of words to speak.

She looked away too, irritated, and in pain, and sort of mad at herself for lashing out on him. She sighed, her crying having become blurred.

"I'm sorry." She apologized and wiped her tears away. "That wasn't fair." She admitted in a sad voice.

Stefan blinked with tears at the corner of his eye. "You'll be okay, Elena. You're the strongest person I know." He assured her. Elena turned to him and wrapped her arms around him pulling him into a warm embrace, the last one before... a long while. He wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her back. And it just fell right: this was where he belonged.

She closed her eyes and let more tears fall. She tightened her grip on his shoulder and his back holding on him for dear life. She sobbed. "I love you so much, Stefan." She told him her brown eyes brimming with tears.

Stefan couldn't help but shed tears as well. "I love you more." He reciprocated honestly.

Elena sniffed and reluctantly pulled back knowing he had to go.

Stefan cupped her head and laid a tender kiss upon her forehead closing his eyes, releasing another tear. "Always." He told her.

He pulled back and Elena opened her eyes meeting his afflicted ones. She gazed at him as though she was trying to burn his image into her memory. For she didn't know if… she didn't know when…

She memorized everything about him: from his so particular and amazing scent, passing by how the front of his hair was spiked a little on top and subtly worked together into a peak, to his gorgeous, unique, forest green eyes.

Their eyes went back and forth between the other's two until catching them both off guard she crashed her lips against his in a fiery, passionate, painful kiss. They both poured their heart and soul into that goodbye kiss; they poured their immeasurable love for one another into it and prolonged it for as long as they could… until they were out of breath. They pulled away and panted, their foreheads grazing.

Stefan reluctantly loosened his grip around her waist and released her. He walked away from her moving backwards, keeping his eyes on her committing her to his memory while pertinently knowing that he could never forget her even if he tried. Elena refused to cry refusing that his last image of her was her in tears.

He eventually turned around and kept walking to his car. He entered his SUV and started it. It took all Stefan's mental strength not to look back at her one last time but, he knew if he did, he would never find it in him to actually leave. So he simply drove off.

And once he had disappeared off into the blue, Elena did the only thing she had left to do: she fell onto the ground and cried her heart out.

NOVEMBER 2013

She was a mess! It had been a month and Elena was barely recovering. She was missing classes, what would be on her college report; she was scarcely feeding herself and nobody was getting was through to her! Damon had simply given up: he checked out on her every time he could, made sure she was still alive, but he was truly short of ideas to make her feel alive again. Jeremy had done everything he could too… to no avail. So as a last resort, he just called Bonnie and asked her if she and Caroline would come pay their BFF and current mess a visit. Of course, they said yes and two days later here they were: in Mystic Falls in the raven-haired woman's bedroom.

All three of them were seated on her bed. Through her hard and truly unceasing tears, Elena had managed to tell them all the details about her breakup with Stefan and the latter's sudden departure a month ago. To say the blonde and the witch were taken aback would have been an understatement: they were already aware of the couple's separation, but they were completely unaware of the reason why.

"So how are things between you and Damon?" Bonnie inquired causing Elena to look up at her.

"Bonnie!" Caroline scolded her. "What the hell?! That's irrelevant!" She spoke harshly.

"Shut up, Caroline!" Bonnie snapped. "That is the reason Stefan left in the first place." She reminded her before turning back to Elena. "So how are things between you and Damon?" she asked again.

Elena shrugged not sure if she was getting the witch's point. "They are… normal." She answered. "We haven't… gotten closer or anything if that's what you want to know." She said. "He's dating Rebekah." Elena informed.

"He is?!" Her two friends exclaimed simultaneously their eyes widened.

"He is." Elena affirmed. "They are hardly apart for more than an hour." She commented half-rolling her eyes.

Caroline moved her head backwards as she frowned discontented.

"You seem to be delighted." Bonnie remarked ironically. "Are you jealous?" She asked directly.

"What?! No! Absolutely not!" the raven-haired woman exclaimed.

"Whoa. Chill out." Caroline advised her. "What's up with being defensive?"

"I'm not being defensive." Elena contradicted crossing her arms under her chest.

"Yes, you are." Bonnie supported her roommate in Boston. "…which is maybe a good thing." She gave her opinion and both Caroline and Elena knit her brows in confusion. "Maybe Stefan was right to leave so you and Damon can live what you have to live." She said simply.

"Yeah right, as if Damon could be the better option." Caroline commented sardonically.

"Shut up, Caroline!" Bonnie said once again.

"What do you mean, Bonnie?" Elena's small voice was heard asking.

The dark-skinned woman shrugged. "I mean that Stefan left for a reason. Don't ruin things so that he left for nothing. Get together with Damon. Explore you feelings!" she exhorted. "It's about time." She said pointedly.

"Since when are you on Damon's side?" Caroline asked the witch disbelieving, an almost contemptuous expression on her face.

"I'm not." Bonnie defended. "But Stefan's got a point." She paused. "I mean how do you choose between two ice-cream flavors when you've only tasted once?" she attempted to explain.

"Shut up, Bonnie!" Caroline rebuked this time around.

"I cannot believe you just said that." Elena spoke.

"Yeah, neither can I." The witch said actually shocked by her own words.

The three girls looked at each other in a way that said it all and burst out laughing the second after.

Elena sighed after her laughter calmed. "I just miss Stefan so much." She confided to her best friends heartfelt. "I love him. I can't just forget about him." She told them.

He was constantly on her mind.

Things weren't meant to feel like this, they weren't supposed to be without each other… He was her whole life…; and she knew she was his. The pieces of her so messed up life didn't fall into place without Stefan… It just didn't rhyme without him! Her world was deprived of its meaning.

She had this aching pain in her chest; and it-just-wouldn't-go-away! Every time she would close her eyes, his image would appear in her head, and memories of them would rush back to her mind and leave her with a bittersweet feeling; for it was all so poignantly beautiful.

"Nobody's asking you to." Bonnie said.

"It's not about forgetting him, Elena; it's about learning how to live without him again." Caroline explained.

"So you agree with all that Bonnie said?" Elena asked the blonde confused.

Caroline tilted her head to the side, indication of her indecision. "Not… entirely; but yeah, in large part." She responded nodding.

"Wow." The raven-haired woman let out extremely stunned by the blonde's sudden change of behavior.

"Atta girl!" Bonnie said at the attention of her roommate in Boston and as a result, they all laughed.

"Don't get me wrong: I am definitely still a Stelena shipper, always will be! Guilty as charged!" Caroline specified however and Bonnie and Elena exchanged an amused knowing look. "But maybe it's necessary for you guys to remain apart for now; maybe, you have to be with Damon first so you can all realize what I always knew: that you and Stefan are meant to be!" She declared pointedly.

Bonnie smiled and rolled her eyes playfully while Elena bore a thoughtful expression and seemed to be taking in Caroline's words.

"He let you go, Elena." The blonde said. "And that is actually the most beautiful demonstration of love that you can do to someone: letting them go…, setting them free." She finished.

Elena stared at her friend several seconds taking in what she said, and then looked away; a faraway expression appeared on her face. Caroline was right: what Stefan was doing for her was very selfless: he was doing what he deemed the best for her; he was letting her go, and by so doing the ultimate sacrifice. And this wasn't about forgetting Stefan. She could never forget him even if she tried. She would always remember him and their love, and forever would always be theirs; but she had to move on with her life and rebuild herself.

After all: don't people who are meant to be always find their way back to each other?

She would have to hold on to that.

"Thank you." She suddenly said. "Thank you for coming so fast." She paused. "Thank you for being here." Elena acknowledged.

"Thank Jeremy." Bonnie said.

"We're exactly where we need to be." Caroline outdid. "Girl hug." She said opening her arms and her two friends laughed but complied.

JANUARY 2014

It had been a few months since Stefan left and Elena was doing much better, and more importantly, she was starting to feel better. One must say that Jeremy and Damon weren't for nothing in her recovery; they were of great support.

She and Damon were sitting in a couch in his house watching a movie casually on a mundane Friday night. It was almost unbelievable how casual their life had been since Klaus had consented to leave Elena the hell alone.

Damon turned his head to see Elena's face and saw how concentrated she was and how intent on the movie her eyes were. He raised an incredulous eyebrow at her. "What is it with women and this Dicaprio guy anyway?" Damon voiced his thoughts.

"Uh…hello." Elena said waving her hand before his face. "He's beautiful!" she responded pointedly. "He's sexy, he's muscled, and he has a romantic air…"

Damon rolled his eyes.

She slapped him gently on the torso. "Hey! You're supposed to be a substitute for Bonnie and Caroline on Friday movie night." She reminded him and he raised his brow in interrogation, so she elaborated. "You're supposed to be drooling with me and saying how sexy he is, not criticizing him." She explained.

Damon scoffed. "Yeah, that's not happening." He said.

"Then, have the obligingness to shut up." She told him pointedly before focusing back on the movie.

Less than thirty minutes later, Revolutionary Road came to an end, and Elena reached out for the remote control to turn off the TV. Damon reached out for the hand-held device at the same time causing their fingers to brush against each other. Intense instant physical reaction. Damon would have sworn he felt an electric discharge go through him.

They retrieved their hands in slow motion and their eyes locked. In that moment, none of them would have been able to tear their gaze away from the other even if they had wanted to. Their eyes went back and forth between the other's eyes and lips. Tired of always thinking things through and overanalyzing, Elena decided to act on her feelings for a change, and shut out her reason: she gently crashed her lips against his. Though caught off guard, Damon still responded almost instantly.

It was a sweet yet impetuous kiss. It had been so long Damon had almost forgotten how amazing it felt to kiss Elena. The raven-haired woman had no idea what she was doing, but it sure felt good!

After several seconds, Elena pulled away and slowly opened her eyes to meet Damon's confused ones. She looked into them trying to gauge his reaction and to figure out what he was thinking: he looked as caught up in the moment as he was, so she took another chance and brought her lips closer to his again. She didn't kiss him, however, choosing to leave that decision to him.

Damon's eyes oscillated between Elena's captivating eyes and her luring lips. He sucked in a shaky intake of breath. Refusing to even try to understand what was happening, Damon closed the gap separating their lips and enjoyed the feelings of her lips moving in synchronization with his.

She brought her hand to the back of his head to pull him closer to her, and before he could even begin to register what was happening, Damon was half on top of her. They kissed more hungrily than before, as though they simply couldn't get enough of each other. Elena was utterly caught up in the heat of the moment: the only thing on her mind right now was Damon and his hands leaving a burning mark on her skin wherever he touched her.

She started unbuttoning his shirt as they ravaged one another's mouth. His shirt's two first buttons opened, Elena reached out for Damon's belt. She was trying to get him rid of it when he pulled away all of a sudden. Her right hand dropped from his hair to his neck and she lightly frowned in incomprehension. "Rebekah." He let out. Her brows raised at the blonde vampire's name. She stared at him as the realization dawned upon her, and then her hand dropped from his neck to her side.

"I can't do this to Rebekah." He said apologetically and lifted his gaze to her. She stared at him several seconds – and then looked away to the emptiness.