Gravity

Disclaimer: I don't own anything or anyone from The Vampire Diaries.

Hello…

It's me…

Sorry, I just had to do it.

So sorry for the wait for this chapter – lots of different factors I don't want to bore you with – I'm sure some of you will know if you follow me on twitter. Have you ever tried writing 6,800 words with one hand? It's really hard.

Hope you like this one…because I don't…

July 7th 2017

Friday 8.00pm

Mystic Falls

"Oh there you are Elena! Glad you could finally make it." Jenna darts towards us the second we walk into The Grill. She glances at Damon who follows behind me, a suspicious smile creeping on her face. "And you both came together..." She sends me a look and I glance at Damon amused to see a smirk lingering on how face. "Now I know what took you so long." She looks at me pointedly with her eyebrows raised.

My mouth opens and closes because Jenna's right and doesn't she know it.

Luckily for me, Damon calmly and casually interrupts her before she can say anything else.

"Did Ric purposely choose to have this thing at The Grill so I can't escape work even on my night off?" He eyes the bar skeptically. When I informed Damon of the venue tonight, the first thing he said was that he would probably finish the night on the wrong side of the bar due to the ever ongoing staffing issues.

I told him that his boss would have to get past me first.

"Actually I was the one who chose The Grill." Jenna replies in defense of her future husband. "I know your boss from high school, so we got a good discount. It sucks for you but it's perfect for me." She teases him and I smile. Jenna has surprisingly accepted Damon into this whole wedding thing really really well. I think it has more to with Alaric's influence than my own but the end result is still the same no matter what the reason.

"If I get pulled behind the bar tonight then I'm coming after you." Damon jokingly replies. I laugh, Jenna joining in as Damon's hand falls to rest to the small of my back. "I'll go get us some drinks, I won't be long." He squeezes my waist before heading off into the crowd. I smile, watching him effortlessly walk through the busy restaurant.

When I turn back to Jenna she has a knowing smile on her face. "So are you and Damon officially back together then?"

I roll my eyes and let out a loud sigh. "Why are we talking about my love life when this is YOUR bachelorette party?" I try to deter her.

"Because you're my niece and I'm interested?"

"Nice try but I don't want to talk about it tonight."

Jenna grimaces. "Ouch, that bad?"

I pull a face because that probably isn't the right word to use to describe our current situation. "Not bad," I deny. "It's just...complicated right now."

"Okay." She holds up her hands defensively, seemingly taking pity on my awkward predicament "no more boy talk, at least not your boy." She smirks and I let out a silent sigh of relief.

"Where is Ric anyway?"

She smiles amused and points across the room where he is cornered by a small group of women. "He's getting interrogated by my high school friends."

I grin. "Oh I am sure he is enjoying every minute of that!" I giggle at the look of his face because he looks completely out of his depth right now. "I bet he is regretting the idea of a joint bachelor and bachelorette party now."

Jenna giggles and nods in agreement. "That's what he gets for being so tight and trying to save money." She stares at him and I smile seeing the complete love and admiration in her eyes despite her constant teasing. "I think I'm gonna go save him." She grins and I laugh and agree.

I watch her leave before heading towards the bar, I notice my Mom standing across the room talking to Carol Lockwood but I avoid all eye contact as I dart across the room unnoticed. Damon turns around just in time to meet me with two drinks in his hand. "Here you go." He hands me my glass and I press my lips against his in a quick kiss. "Where did Jenna run off too?"

"To save Ric from his worst nightmare." I giggle and motion in their direction. Damon's eyes follow and a smirk crosses his lips.

"Damn, I wish I could have heard that conversation. He looks awkward as hell." We both share a look at the obvious look of relief that crosses over Ric's face when Jenna appears by his side. "For a teacher he is sure lacking in social skills."

"He befriended you didn't he?" I nudge Damon with a smile.

"Exactly." He smirks back and I giggle, wrapping my arms around his neck and pressing my lips against his in a quick kiss.

"You're not so bad." I tease while tilting my head to the side. Damon's hands gripping my hips tightly and pulling me even closer against him.

"Oh yeah?" He smirks and I practically swoon.

I nod silently with a grin before brushing my lips back against his while ignoring all of the prying eyes watching us – including my mothers.

I make a note to try and avoid her tonight.

My earlier plan of avoidance doesn't last long when I see my Mom heading my way and this time I have no escape. I let out an inward sigh and take a sip of my drink as she approaches while I plaster on a fake smile.

"Hey, Mom."

"Elena," she eyes me skeptically. "Don't think I haven't noticed you've been avoiding me all night." I stay silent because I have no comeback. She's right, I have been avoiding her. "What's going on? I've barely seen you these last couple of weeks. Your Dad and I were so happy when you told us you would be coming home this summer, we were so excited to spend time with you and instead we've probably seen you even less than we did when you stayed on campus."

"Mom, I've been busy helping Jenna with the wedding and-"

"Elena," she cuts me off with a sad but knowing smile. "We both know you haven't been spending all this time with my sister." She pauses for a brief moment. "I noticed you came here with Damon tonight."

I nod slowly. "I did." I confirm.

"I'm also going to assume that that's where you've been spending all your nights lately?"

I eye her carefully and again nod. "Yes. That's right." She doesn't look happy but she doesn't look mad either. I frown slightly. "If you're going to give me a lecture, I need to remind you that yes you're my Mom but that doesn't mean you get to dictate my relationships. I spent so long being scared of hurting you and Dad but never realizing at the time that it was the two of you who were hurting me."

"Elena-" she tries to cut in but I hold up my hand.

"No, please let me finish. I'm not asking you to like Damon because he's my boyfriend or my friend or the most important person in my life. I'm asking you to give him a chance, to let go of your hatred and prejudice and just let yourself see with clear eyes the kind of man he really is. If you do that and still don't like him then that's okay – it happens, personalities clash and some people just don't click. It would suck if that happened but at least I'll know you tried. Damon's not going anywhere, whether or not he'll be in my life as my friend or something more is irrelevant - he's always going to be in my life." I feel relieved as the words escape my lips. "If you can't accept that then we're going to have a bigger problem than me not staying at home six nights a week."

My Mom stares back at me with wide eyes, clearly not expecting me to come out with a statement like this – especially in such a public crowded place.

"I'll let you think about it. I'll probably be staying at Damon's tonight but I'll be home tomorrow."

"Elena," she grabs my arm to stop me from walking away. "You have to understand it's not as simple as that. Every time I see Damon all I can think about is how he took you away from us for six long months. Even now I don't think you realize how hard those months were while you were gone. I couldn't sleep for worrying about you – I didn't know where you are, or how you were or even who you were with. I was sick with worry every single day. I can't just forgive Damon for that and even if I wanted too, what about your Dad? He's my husband, Elena. I have to stand by him."

"And I have to stand by Damon."

My mom's eyes water with tears. I shake my head sadly and turn away. It's been four long years; I don't know what else we can do to have the acceptance from our families.

"Okay I'll try."

I stop walking, slowly turning around to where my Mom is standing. I take a small step back towards her unsure if I heard her correctly.

"I'm not saying that it's going to work out but I guess I'm willing to try."

I can't fight the smile that creeps onto my face. "What about Dad?"

She sighs loud enough so I can hear it. "He's going to have to deal with it." My smile widens even more at her words. "But just so you know - I'm not doing this for Damon's sake, Elena; I'm doing it for you."

I nod happily, eagerly, finally feeling a hint of the acceptance that I've always craved from my mother for my relationship with Damon.

"Thank you."

She opens her arms in a rare offering of a hug. I smile and drop into her arms as she squeezes me tightly before pulling back. Her hands stay on my upper arms softly. "You know all I want is for you and Jeremy to be happy."

"I am happy, Mom," I smile softly. "I'm the happiest I've been in a very long time."

"I know." She sends me a loving smile. "It's written all over your face. I can't deny that Damon has something to do with that."

"Damon Salvatore, I heard you were back in town."

I frown at the unfamiliar voice and slowly turnaround from my position propped up at the bar. I see a short skinny brunette girl standing by my side with a flirtatious smile on her face.

I know her. I think her name is Amy? That's right…she was in Elena's class. I think I slept with her once…no…I didn't sleep with her but I did make out with her a few times at different parties throughout the years.

In fact…I'm pretty sure she gave me a blow job once in Klaus's garage while I was dating Katherine but I'll not mention that part.

"News travels fast in Mystic Falls." I reply casually.

"Actually, I live in New York now. This small town life just wasn't enough for me." She leans up close beside me and I refrain from rolling my eyes. "I didn't think it was for you here either – I'm surprised to see you back here after so long."

"What? You mean since I've been in prison?" I ask her amused and she smiles widely.

"Well I was trying to be polite, but yes." Her hand reaches out and touches my forearm. "I'm sorry that it happened to you. My sister told me it was your uncle who framed you, that must have been awful. I can't imagine how difficult it must have been for you being locked up in that place with all of those murderers and rapists, especially knowing you were actually innocent."

I smile politely and discreetly try to pull my arm back but Amy doesn't get the hint. "Well, it wasn't quite a walk in the park but I got through it and here I am." My smile widens when I see Elena approaching us and she does not look happy.

"Here you are," Amy purrs back while she rubs my arm slowly with a smile just as Elena reaches my side.

"Hey," she stifles a smile, her arm automatically wrapping around my waist and I try to hide my smirk. "Did you get me my drink?" She completely blanks Amy, her eyes on only me.

"Yup." I hand over her vodka and pull my arm away from Amy's hand, my other wrapping around Elena's waist and pulling her even closer to me.

"Elena," Amy's smile drops slightly at our closeness but she does her best to hide it. "How have you been? I haven't seen you in years."

"Fine," Elena replies bluntly, "and I know." I choke back a laugh at the harshness in her voice.

Amy doesn't look impressed by Elena's frankness and her eyes dart between the two of us. "So are you two back together? That didn't take long." I hear the coldness in her voice and this time I don't even bother to hide my smirk.

I'm curious and eager to hear Elena's response because we still haven't defined our relationship to each other never mind anyone else.

"Well, life is too short to wait around for the inevitable." Elena responds conceitedly. I squeeze her hip tightly, running my fingers slowly underneath her shirt as she continues. "What about you, Amy? Are you seeing anyone?"

"No." Amy replies a little coldly before glancing at me. "I'm single."

"Oh well I'm sure someone will come along soon." Elena sends her a fake sweet smile, her tone condescending and I try my hardest to stop laughing. She turns her back then, clearly ending the conversation as she tugs on my hand and pulls me away from the bar. "God I hate that slut."

"Slut?" I chuckle amused. "Elena Gilbert, were you jealous?" I tease her playfully.

"No." She scoffs in annoyance. "Not jealous just…slightly irritated that she believed you were free game when you're not. She was all over you."

"I think she was being more nosey than seductive."

"Nah-uh." Elena shakes her head defiantly. "She was about ten seconds away from shoving her hand down your pants."

I can't help the short howl of laughter that escapes my lips from her words. "Well I suppose that's nothing she's never done before." I tease cheekily.

Elena's jaw drops. "Damon!" she punches me hard on the shoulder and I pull away with a laugh. "You're an ass!"

I rub my arm with a fake pout. "That hurt."

"Good. You deserved it." She scowls. "I can't believe you've slept with her!" I blink surprised at the slightly hurt and anger in her voice. "When did this happen?"

"I didn't actually sleep with her." I try to make Elena feel better. "It was just a blow job." I laugh loudly again at the look on her face.

"Just a-"

"Hey," I cut her off amused, wrapping my arms around her tightly and pulling her against me in a bear hug when she tries to push away. "This was way back before we even started anything with each other. I'm pretty sure I was dating Katherine at the time. It didn't mean anything, I barely even remember it. She means absolutely nothing to me."

Elena relaxes a little in my arms, her hand landing between my shoulder blades while the other wraps around my waist. "I told you she's a slut." She mumbles into my shoulder and I chuckle.

"I know." I pull back slightly to press a soft kiss to her temple. "Where have you been anyway? You were gone ages."

"I ran into my Mom." She murmurs still staying wrapped up in my arms, her head resting in the crook of my neck.

"Uh oh," I grimace, waiting to hear the fallout but surprisingly it doesn't come.

"Actually," Elena pulls back from me, her hands trailing along my arms until they loop into my own. "It wasn't so bad. I think I got through to her a little bit. She even said she would make an effort with you."

My eyes widen in shock. "What? She actually said that?"

Elena nods eagerly. "I basically told her that you were the most important person in my life and you weren't going anywhere so if she couldn't accept that then we were going to have a big problem."

I can't help but stare at her surprised but I'm also a little hesitant in wanting to cause anymore friction within her family. "And you were okay saying that were you?"

"Yeah." Elena replies like it's no big deal. "Of course I was."

"I don't want to cause any more trouble for your family, Elena."

Elena frowns. "You're not…if anything this is helping the situation. If my Mom makes an effort with you and gets to see how amazing you really are then I'm sure she'll be able to convince my Dad and brother to do the same."

I can't help but scoff a little. "I'm sorry baby, but when it comes to your father I don't think it's going to be that simple."

Her face twists slightly and lets out a small huffed sigh. "Okay so he's stubborn but sooner or later he's going to have to accept you into my life." Her hands run up my back slowly and she presses a small kiss against my chest through my shirt. "And for the record, you're not trouble, Damon." She kisses the bottom of my jaw. "At least, not the bad kind." She smirks slightly and I can't fight the smile on my face from the naughty look in her eye.

"Do you want to get out of here?" I run my hand lower down her waist, briefly grazing her ass before sliding back up.

Elena nods silently, her eyes twinkling as I grab her hand and pull her out of The Grill without even saying goodbye to the future bride and groom.

I'm sure they'd understand!

Damon probably looks the most nervous I've seen him look in a very long time. I can see his face paling the closer we get to our destination.

"It's going to be okay." I reach over and press my hand against his thigh.

"I know." Damon replies stubbornly, his voice deep and defensive.

"Damon…it's okay to be nervous." I smirk slightly despite the awful pit that is resting in my stomach. Honestly I'm terrified but I'm trying to be strong and not show it.

"I'm not nervous, Elena." Damon replies bluntly. "It's just dinner."

"With my Dad." My voice shakes slightly as I'm reminded of the event we are about to punish ourselves with. As much as I really appreciate my Mom's efforts in trying to give Damon a chance, I didn't expect an evening with both of my parents to happen so soon after I somehow managed to call a truce between Mom and Damon.

God knows what my Dad thinks of this right now. I won't be surprised if we arrive at my family home and he's somehow managed to think of a believable excuse to get out of it.

"No big deal." Damon shrugs. "I spent four years in prison; I've had dinner with bigger assholes than your father."

"Damon!" I gasp with a scold.

"Sorry." He grimaces slightly, sending me a sideways glance. "I know you want us to get along, but the dislike between us goes both ways."

"I know." I smile sadly and squeeze his thigh again, "and I appreciate you coming tonight so much. I know this is hard for you too. Thank you."

He shrugs again, something I've noticed he's been doing a lot of lately. "You know I'd do anything for you." He speaks softly and my stomach flutters at his words. "Plus, you did promise to reward me later." He winks, immediately changing the mood.

"Only if you behave yourself." I reply pointedly.

Damon chuckles and murmurs a reply about trying his best when we turn the corner into my street. I see Ric's car parked outside, grateful that he and Jenna agreed to also come along to act as our buffer, despite their wedding being in three days' time and the bride-to-be in full on bridezilla panic mode.

"Are you ready to do this?" I ask Damon nervously before we get out of the car. "It's not too late to cancel."

Damon seems tense but he shakes his head. "No. We need to do this, Elena. It's been a long time coming."

I nod in understanding and we both silently get out of the car. Damon takes my hand and leads the way. He's about to ring the doorbell but I stop him with a small smile. "Technically I still live here." I tell him amused.

He smiles and I unlock the door and step inside. "Mom? Hello? We're here!" I call out loudly. Jenna approaches me first, her eyes wide with warning and two glasses of wine secured in her hands.

"Take this," she whispers conspiringly. "You're going to need it." My stomach drops at her warning and I take the glass. I don't want to get drunk, not even close, but one glass is needed to calm the nerves.

Damon declines with the excuse of driving and I cringe slightly when I hear Jenna mumble the words of "Your funeral."

"Hey Elena," My Mom hurriedly walks into the hallway, her eyes firmly on me. I notice her apron is still wrapped around her front and she looks a little stressed. She gives me a quick hug before slowly pulling back and braving a look at Damon. She clears her throat. "Damon," she forces a smile. "Welcome."

"Thank you for inviting me, Mrs Gilbert." Damon responds politely and I send him an amused glance over my Mom's shoulder.

He shakes his head discreetly and my Mom forces another smile with some sort of "Mhm" noise before taking a big step back. "Dinner is almost ready if you want to take a seat at the table."

"Sure." I plaster on a big fake smile and motion for Damon to follow me. Ric is already sitting at the table, a glass of bourbon in his hand. He and Damon greet each other somewhat awkwardly due to the situation and I look around the room noting the one big absence.

"Where's Dad?" I ask my Mom as she hurriedly finishes off setting the table. "You said he would be here?"

"He will be." My Mom replies tensely. "He's just in the bathroom…washing up."

"Right." I reply skeptically before sending a nervous glance to Damon. We take a seat opposite Ric and Jenna while my Mom starts serving us dinner, declining our offer to help.

It's not until all of our plates are set on the table when my Dad finally decides to make his entrance. He silently takes his seat at the head of the table and doesn't even look our way.

Ric coughs awkwardly as my Mom sits at the other side, in between Ric and Damon, while my Dad sits between Jenna and me.

"Well, everyone dig in." My Mom speaks up in her fake happy tone despite the absolutely awful atmosphere of the room.

I can't hide my annoyance as my Dad picks up his fork and starts to eat without even looking in our direction never mind a welcoming. "Aren't you even going to say hello?"

"I greeted Jenna and Ric when they arrived." My Dad replies coldly, his eyes never meeting mine. I clench my jaw angrily at his attitude.

"And what about your daughter and your guest?" My voice is hard and I can't help it. If Damon and my Mom are willing to make an effort to build bridges for my sake, then surely my own father should be willing too? I'm not asking for them to kiss and make up immediately, or even be friends, but a polite conversation over dinner isn't too much to ask for.

"Elena…" My Mom interrupts me, clearly not liking where this is going.

"No, Mom." I snap in annoyance. "We didn't come here to sit in silence."

My Mom goes to argue but my Dad cuts her off. "Hello to my daughter and her guest." He grumbles coldly. "Emphasis on her not ours, no Salvatore will ever be welcome in this house by me – especially not that one."

My jaw drops angrily and I hear Damon let out a dry cold laugh beside me.

"Grayson please," My Mom speaks before I get the chance too. "You agreed to behave yourself."

"I agreed to sit here and eat dinner and then leave." My Dad replies coldly. "I did not agree to interact or make anyone feel welcome."

"Grow up." I snarl at him angrily.

I see Ric and Jenna both guzzling down their drinks opposite us but I ignore it.

"I'm not the one who needs to grow up, sweetheart. Maybe if you used those brain cells of yours you keep hidden away you might understand why this whole night is a complete joke."

"Don't talk to her like that." Damon cuts in angrily but this just eggs him on even more.

"I'll talk to my daughter however I please, Salvatore."

"PLEASE!" My Mom slams her fist against the table and we all jump in shock from her loud outburst. "Please," she repeats slightly calmer but her voice is still tense. "I didn't slave over this meal all afternoon for you all to let it go cold because you are too busy arguing to eat it. Now all of you show some manners and the respect I know you all have somewhere and shut up and eat."

My Dad at least has the decency to look as guilty as I feel. Damon mumbles an apology beside me and we fall into another tense silence. Damon places his hand on my thigh for a moment and I send him a grateful small smile before he pulls it away.

We don't want to push our luck with even a slither of PDA.

At least the arguing has stopped now. I notice Jenna guzzling down the wine across from me and I send her a look begging for help. She catches my eye and slowly lowers her glass onto the table.

"So…" she breaks the awkward and tense silence. "Who's excited for the wedding?" she puts on a fake happy voice and this time my smile is genuine.

"I can't believe it's in three days' time." My Mom jumps on the subject change immediately. "I never thought I'd see the day that my little sister finally settled down and tied the knot."

I laugh lightly and Jenna gasps amused. "Hey!" My Mom grins and I feel the tension loosen in the room, just a little, but hey that's progress. "To be honest, I'm surprised we made it this far. I didn't think planning a wedding would be so damn stressful. Thank God for you and Elena, I don't know what I would have done otherwise."

Ric coughs loudly and I smirk. "What?" Jenna side eyes him. "Are you really trying to tell me that you have had a lot of input?" I hear Damon chuckle beside me. "You couldn't even be bothered to plan your own bachelor party."

"Yeah now that was disappointing." Damon joins in with a smirk and Ric sends him a silent glare. "I was hoping for at least a trip to Vegas but all we got was The Grill."

"Yeah, yeah." Ric waves them both off, "as if Jenna would have allowed me to go to Vegas."

"He's not wild enough." Jenna teases lovingly, tapping Ric's cheek gently. "Plus there is no way our bank balance would have covered that."

"I don't know…" I join in the conversation. "We managed ok there didn't we?" I look at Damon who nods slowly and it takes us both a moment to notice all four eyes staring at us. I frown confused from the look on their faces.

"You've been to Vegas?" My Mom questions me shocked and my eyes widen.

Shit.

Shit.

Shit.

That summer was the last thing I wanted brought up tonight – and I was the stupid one to bring the damn subject up!

"Uh…" my mouth opens embarrassingly and I glance at Damon who shifts awkwardly in his seat. "We spent some time there."

My Dad slams his glass on the table angrily. If looks could kill, Damon would be dead right now. "You took my little girl to Vegas?"

Damon clears his throat awkwardly. "Yes I did."

His face reddens with anger and he looks between the two of us furiously. "How the hell did you manage that? You were both underage! Who let you in?"

"We had fake ." Damon replies calmly. "Don't worry Mr Gilbert, nothing untoward happened."

I think back to all the drinking, sex and gambling we participated in.

I try not to think about the other major thing that happened…with the ring that is still locked tight in a box out of sight…

"Don't worry?" My Dad's voice rises. "You took my baby girl to Las Vegas, illegally, while you were a wanted felon and you tell me not to worry?!"

"Dad, calm down. Look at me, I'm fine."

"Fine? No, Elena, you are not fine. You are not fine at all." He snarls at me angrily and I shake my head in disbelief. The peaceful polite conversation didn't last long then. "You're not yourself when you're with him! The Elena I know wouldn't leave her family and her home for six months, the Elena I brought up wouldn't harbor a wanted fugitive, and the Elena I raised and nurtured for wouldn't risk her whole damn future for a boy who is nothing but a waste of time and space!"

"Dad!"

"No!" My Dad cuts me off before I can even argue and my ears are ringing in fury. "You need to hear this! If you want me to let that man into my house, you need to know how I feel."

"We all know how you feel! You hate Damon, we've established this many times." I hurl back angrily, my hands shaking with rage. "You hated him when he was just a kid all because he was a Salvatore and you hate him even more now because I fell in love with him. We know how you feel; we all know how you feel. But guess what? It's time to move on! Why are you being so stubborn like this? You said I'm not the Elena you raised, well if the man who raised me is as cold and bitter and hurtful as the man you are now then I'm glad that I'm not that girl!" My voice shakes and my Dad's eyes widen at my words.

"I'm just looking out for you! Don't you see that he's ruining your life?!" My Dad argues back. "How do you expect to be supported by an ex-con? His life is going nowhere, Elena. You're just one year away from graduating college and to do what? Crawl back to him and waste your talents by staying in this damn town in a tiny little apartment? You were going places!"

"I can still have a career and a life, Dad!" I hiss back at him furiously. "It's the 21st century, I don't need to be supported – I can support myself!"

My dad scoffs and shakes his head and suddenly I just can't take this anymore. I look at Damon who is staying uncharacteristically quiet beside me. Nobody is looking at me – everyone has their heads down and their eyes dipped low.

I let out a dry bitter laugh.

Unbelievable.

"I'm out of here." I throw my napkin down onto the table and storm out without looking back. I ignore my Mom's plea to come back and Jenna calling my name.

I swing open the front door and storm down the street wanting to get as far away from this place as possible.

"Elena!"

I keep walking.

"Elena!"

"Elena!" I feel a hand grip my arm and I swing around angrily to see Damon staring at me worriedly. "Stop."

"No, don't!" I snatch my arm from my grip. "Don't tell me what to do, Damon!"

He stares at me back with wide eyes, taken aback from my attitude towards him. "Why are you so mad at me?"

"Are you kidding me?!" I can't help that my voice is raised and I'm sure my neighbors are having a field day right now peeping through their curtains. "What the hell was that in there?"

Damon frowns confused. "What?" he snaps defensively. "I didn't even say anything!"

"Exactly!" I scream back. "You just sat there in silence and let my Dad badmouth you and our relationship! You didn't even try to defend yourself!"

"I didn't want to sit in your father's house and disrespect him. I'm trying to make things right with your family for you. I bit my tongue and kept quiet for you."

I look at him astonished. "Are you serious?! We are supposed to be in this together!" I feel my eyes burning with angry tears.

"You were the one who wanted me to make an effort and try with your family – and now you're bitching at me because I behaved myself? What did you want me to do? Start a fight with your father for the billionth time?!" He barks at me coldly, his arms flying in the air in disbelief.

"No! I didn't want you to argue with him but that doesn't mean you aren't allowed to defend yourself! To defend us!"

"Why?" He shrugs casually. "Everything he said was true."

My jaw drops. "What?"

"He was right. I'm bad for you, Elena! Why are you still even here? Why are you still defending me? I'm bad, Elena, I am bad for you!" I shake my head in disbelief as he continues much to my dismay. "Why did you come back to Mystic Falls this summer when you hate it here?! Why have you been cagey about all of your future plans?! Why are you still here with me? Why haven't you ran as far away from here as humanly possible?!"

My eyes sting with tears, angry, hurt and painful tears. "Because I love you, Damon! Because I love you and I chose you and I stand by my choice!" My voice keeps cracking as I ignore the increasingly worried and terrified part of me that realizes this is the second time that I've told Damon that I love him and he still hasn't said it back.

Damon takes a deep breath and runs his hand through his hair. His face is tense and his eyes are glistening against the streetlight.

I feel sick because I know what's coming. Deep down, I've always known from the moment he didn't say he loved me too.

"Well now I'm choosing, Elena." He speaks calmly, too calmly, "and I'm choosing to let you go."

I feel like we have been here a million times before and I feel like we have had this fight another million times already but for some reason this time is different.

It feels different.

"I'm choosing to relieve you from having to defend me to your family for every awful thing I've ever done. I'm choosing to let you live your life the way it should have been lived. These past few weeks have been a mistake, Elena. I should never have come back into your life like this." I feel the tears streaming down my face as my heart literally feels like it's about to break into two pieces. "I should have stuck to staying away from you. I've brought you back down to a level you should never have even been on to start with. I'm sorry, I was weak and I was selfish. I couldn't stay away from you no matter how much I knew it was the right thing to do."

I shake my head furiously. "Damon no-"

"No, Elena-" he tries to stop me from speaking but I won't have this. I won't let him do this to me again.

"Stop acting like I'm perfect! You always act like I'm perfect! I've done horrible things too, Damon!"

"No, you only started doing questionable things from the moment you met me and I refuse to change you anymore." Damon looks at me dead in the eye. "I'm done, Elena. I can't do this anymore."

A sob escapes my lips as Damon turns to walk away but I storm after him. "No!" I grab his arm heatedly. "You do not get to do this to me! You do not get to walk away from me again! It's not up to you! You made the choice in Portland and I couldn't stop you! Well this time I can! You're punishing yourself, and for what? To let me live some sort of make believe fairy tale life? Well guess what, Damon! Life isn't as simple as that! I don't want to be with anyone else but you. I don't care what job I have, what career I have as long as I get to come home every night to you."

Damon shakes his head irritably. "You don't get it Elena, you-"

"No! You don't get it, Damon! I love you! I love you so much! Tell me that that's not enough?" I challenge him, hating how weak and desperate I sound right now. I clutch onto his arms tightly. "Tell me it's not enough and I'll let you walk away right now." I dare him bravely.

Damon swallows hard and I for a moment I feel hope. He can't do it. He can't say it because he knows that it's not true.

Love beats everything.

The fact that we are both standing here right now after everything we have been through proves that.

Damon slowly and calmly pulls his arms out of my grasp and I stare at him with wide hopeful eyes. I'm panting, feeling breathless from all the shouting and arguing.

I feel emotionally drained and yet my body is tingling with hope.

What we have is worth fighting for.

My heart is burning with love.

"It's not enough, Elena."

Then the flame burns out.

Uh oh!

All reviews are welcome. Thank you again for reading and I hope you enjoyed the chapter even though I don't feel like it's been my best. Sorry again for the delay.

Until next time! I promise it won't take as long :)