Gravity

I don't own anything or anyone from TVD.

1st September 2017

Friday 11.00am

"Why are we staying here again?" Elena asks me again with a smile, her soft fingers lightly drawing imaginary patterns on my bare chest.

I chuckle and squeeze her closer against me. "Nostalgia." I reply simply while pressing a kiss into her hair.

"Right..." Elena leans up slightly to press a kiss to my lips. "You know, we could still experience the nostalgia of the town without staying in this gross motel."

I smirk and run my hand along her naked side.. "But we can't experience the good nostalgia without this bed."

Elena giggles and this time I lean forward to kiss her. "That's true." She whispers against my lips before kissing me once more and falling back down against my chest. "We had a good time in this bed." She smirk, I smile and pull her tighter against me. "I can't believe summer is over already."

I let out a breath and murmur a sound of agreement. "Before you know it you'll be back in your college dorm ready for another year of binge drinking and frat parties."

"Urgh" Elena groans and snuggles closer into my neck "don't remind me."

"Ah come on, it'll be fun."

"This is fun."

"True." I agree "but unfortunately this can't last forever."

"I wish it could." Elena sighs wistfully while pressing a soft kiss against my neck. "I like our lives when it's like this."

"Damn your right, lets just never move from this bed. Fuck college, fuck work, we can live off the land."

Elena laughs and I smile at the sound, kissing the top of her head slowly. "For some reason I can't imagine you fruit picking."

"That's because that'll be your job. I'm the hunter, naturally." I tease with a smirk.

"Sexism isn't cute, Damon." Elena replies lightheartedly. "Besides, if we were to live off the land we would have to become a vegetarian, there is no way in hell I am letting either of us kill any of those poor wild animals."

"You would do so well on a deserted island." I mock her sarcastically.

"Shut up!" She punches my chest and I groan before letting out a chuckle.

Elena is right though. I don't want to go back to reality, I would love to stay in this moment forever. In fact, there have been many moments this summer in which I wish I could press pause – this morning being one of them.

The six weeks or so we have been travelling together have been refreshing and much needed. It's nice to escape Mystic Falls legitimately, without the fear of getting caught and that indescribable sickening feeling in our stomachs we used to get every time we saw a cop in the street or when someone looked at us a little longer than necessary.

Its also done our relationship the world of good. Every night when Elena's panting in pleasure underneath me, or when she smiles or when I hear her cute little giggle I constantly have to curse myself for even thinking of the idea that I would be able to live without her.

I've tried it once before and it sucked.

I'm never going to let her go again.

"What are you thinking about?" Elena pulls me away from my thoughts, her fingers stroking my hair soothingly. "Hmm?"

I smile and look into her dark irises which takes my breath away. "I'm just glad that we're here…that you're here with me. I know I nearly ruined things between us but-"

"Ssh," Elena cuts me off and presses her fingers against my lips. "None of that matters anymore, okay? We're only thinking about right now and our future, remember?"

I nod my head in agreement because she is right. There is no point in dwelling on the past, I have done it too many times in my life and now I know better.

"I love you, Elena, so much."

"I love you too, Damon. Forever."

"Elena!" I giggle as Bonnie and Caroline surround me while pulling me into a tight group hug. "Welcome back! We missed you."

"I missed you too." I pull back with a smile and look down to Caroline's growing baby bump. "Wow, check out the little peanut." I grin happily and press my hand against it.

"Urgh stop it," Caroline groans. "I'm starting to get so fat."

I giggle as Bonnie rolls her eyes beside me. "You're pregnant, Caroline. You're not fat."

"I feel like a whale." She whines.

"Oh come on there's barely anything on you." I laugh and it's true. Apart from the tiny bump on her stomach, the rest of her body hasn't changed a single bit.

"God help us when we make it to your third trimester." Bonnie teases her lightly and looks at me. "You are never leaving me alone with her again, you hear me? Her hormones are crazy."

Caroline gasps and slaps Bonnie hard on the shoulder but it doesn't take us long before the three of us burst into giggles.

I got a late night phone call about two weeks ago from Caroline to tell me that she finally plucked up the courage to tell her Mom about the pregnancy. Understandably Liz was shocked at first, especially when she found out who the father was, as far as she knew Caroline didn't even speak to Stefan never mind sleep with him. After many tears, Liz, as I predicted, promised Caroline that she would be with her every step of the way and that she will always love her no matter what.

To say that it was a relief to not only Caroline, but Bonnie and I too was an understatement. We were worried for our best friend, hiding away at Whitmore wasn't healthy, especially since she was there alone.

As far as I know, her and Stefan have agreed to stay friends for the baby's sake. Whether or not something else happens later on between them is a different story, but we're all just glad that they are able to keep it civil for the sake of the baby.

Who knows, Caroline and I might actually become family in the future.

"Anyway, enough about me." Caroline brings me back from my thoughts as she pulls me into a booth at The Grill. "I want to hear about your trip, how was it?"

I practically feel my face light up. "Amazing." I cant help but gush and my smile widens at Bonnie and Caroline's encouraging smiles back.

A few years ago this never would have happened.

It's incredible how much has changed since our high schools years – how far we have all come not just as individuals but together as well.

"It's exactly what Damon and I needed," my eyes drift across the room where Damon is standing behind the bar serving drinks. My poor man has been thrusted straight back in to working life, his manager luckily a good enough guy to give Damon his job straight back – which also meant an immediate shift behind the bar. I look back at Caroline and Bonnie who are smirking at me.

"You're swooning." Bonnie teases me with a laugh and I send her a playful glare.

"Shut up!"

"Now you're blushing!"

I shake my head with a smile because there is no point in trying to hide it. Damon has given me plenty of reasons to blush in the last few weeks.

Speaking of the devil...

"Ladies," he approaches our table with a smirk, his eyes landing on mine and I cant help but lick my lips as he winks at me. "Two special cocktails for you two made by yours truly," he places down both glasses in front of myself and Bonnie before turning to Caroline. "And a non-alcoholic mocktail for the mother of my nephew."

"Or niece." I cut in with an eye roll. Despite Caroline still not knowing the sex of the baby, both Stefan and Damon are convinced it's going to be a boy.

Us girls however have been buying everything in pink.

Damon deliberately ignores my comment as he lifts up the empty tray. "On the house." He winks again at all three of us for good measure before walking away from the table, not before pressing a quick kiss to the top of my head on his way past.

"Did I tell you I was really starting to like him?" Bonnie smirks at me and I laugh and shake my head.

"Agreed." Caroline grins at me as she takes a sip of her drink. "Wow," she lets out a loud breath. "There may not be any alcohol in this thing but it still tastes good."

"Best bartender in the state." I smile smugly.

"So…" Bonnie stirs her drink while looking across at me. "Without meaning to bring the mood down a little bit…have you spoken to your parents since you've been back in Mystic Falls?"

I let out a breath. "Sort of, I called my Mom briefly last night to let her know we were back in town. I'm not that much of a bitch to let them find out from someone else, but apart from that nothing."

"We're going back to Whitmore in a couple of days, don't think you think you should see them?" Bonnie advises hesitantly.

I nod in agreement. "Yes, you're right. Life is too short to hold grudges but it's just hard, you know? Damon and I are in such a good place right now and I don't want anything to bring us down."

"Honestly Elena, the amount of crap that the two of you have been through I really believe that you can handle anything now. Besides, you said yourself that your Mom was starting to warm to the idea of the two of you together."

"But she still doesn't like it." I point out. "I suppose you're right, Damon is never going to have a good relationship with my family just like I probably never will with the Salvatore's. We've both accepted that. Whether or not things will change in the future, who knows? But for now we are happy with how things are." I glance over at Damon again who is sharing a laugh with a couple on a table across the room as he clears their plates. "Right now the only thing I have to worry about is how I'm going to cope being away from him for eight months." The nervous pit hits my stomach again at the thought of me going back to college.

I know that Whitmore is only a couple of hours away so it's not like we will never be able to see each other, but with Damon wanting to save up money to buy his own place, I know he will be working more days and longer hours. I cant come home as often either with it being my senior year and to be honest the idea of not being able to see him every day is starting to freak me out a little bit.

Damon insists it will all be fine, he has promised to come up to campus as much as physically possible and I'm going to try and come back to Mystic Falls on as many weekends as my assignments and revision will allow me.

It's not even a full year, I know that we have been through so much more challenging and harder times but after spending every day together for the past two months it's just hard to think about.

"Don't worry Elena," Caroline brings me back to reality. "I'll be here to keep an eye on him."

I smile, reminded of another reason why this school year is going to be different. Caroline has decided to postpone her entire senior year to stay in Mystic Falls to have the baby. She has also somehow managed to persuade our local newspaper that it needs a fashion section, therefore finding herself a job to support herself and her daughter…or son.

"Have I told you lately how proud I am of you?" I change the subject to my best friend because it needs to be said. She has been so brave, I don't know if I would have been able to handle things as well as her if I was in her shoes.

"Oh shut up." Caroline blushes and waves me off.

"No it's true," Bonnie joins in agreement. "You're a badass Caroline Forbes and we love you."

I watch as Caroline's eyes water and she shakes her head, muttering something about hormones underneath her breath. "Well you know I wouldn't have been able to do any of this without the two greatest and bestest ever friends in the whole entire universe."

We share a laugh and decide to cheers the future.

Everything is looking bright.

"So I think that's everything." I close the trunk to Elena's car and turn to face her with a smile however it's not returned. "Hey," I reach out and pull her against me in a tight hug at the sad look on her face. "Don't be upset, this isn't a goodbye. I'm going to come and see you next week for a couple of nights. It'll fly by, you will be having so much fun catching up with your friends, swapping summer stories and drinking far too much alcohol before classes officially start to notice I'm not there anyway."

"No." I hear her muffled reply against my chest. "I'll be too busy thinking about how much I'm missing you to even try and have fun."

I chuckle and pull her from me and shake my head. "Elena, this is your last year at college. You need to enjoy it."

She sulks but lets out a sigh because she knows that I'm right. "I wish you could come with me. You know there are bars in Whitmore right? Plenty of them actually."

I laugh and shake my head again, "And where would I live? I don't think Bonnie would be ok with me moving in to your tiny dorm. Besides, who is going to stay here to make sure that Stefan and Klaus don't kill each other?"

Elena smiles despite herself. "I guess that's a valid reason. I just wish it wasn't so far away."

"Two hours baby, if you ever need me for anything I'll only be two hours away. Promise me you'll call me if you need me? I don't care if it's just exam stress at two AM, you call me, okay?"

"Okay." Elena leans up and presses her lips against mine. "And you have to call me too, okay? Even if you're just sick of Klaus or if you've had a bad day at work. You call me, no matter what the time." She smirks and I chuckle and nod my head, kissing her again.

"Promise." I agree while wrapping my arms around her tightly and pulling her into another hug. "God I'm going to miss you."

"Tell me about it." Elena grumbles and I press quick soft kisses into her hair. "I love you."

"And I love you." I pull back and kiss her again, this time it's slower, deeper. Elena wraps her arms around my neck and moans into my mouth.

I don't ever want to let her go.

Elena reluctantly pulls back, very much aware that Bonnie is waiting to be picked up and they are already running two hours behind schedule (blame our late morning shower for that…). She smiles sadly and I wipe away a fallen tear from her cheek.

"Forever?"

"Forever." I confirm with a soft smile. I walk her to her car and open the door for her, when she sits down I cant help but follow her actions and press my lips against hers again in a sensual kiss.

Elena's fingers tangle in to my hair, gripping my locks tightly. "You're making this even harder to leave."

"It's not the only thing getting harder." I cant help myself.

Elena gasps and slaps my shoulder, letting out a laugh as she looks at me in disbelief. "Damon! Way to ruin a moment."

I chuckle and kiss her again. "Sorry baby." I kiss her one last time before leaning back up, shutting the door behind me. Elena winds down the window and tugs me back, her lips touching mine in a soft kiss.

"I really need…" Kiss, "to go." Kiss.

"I know." I murmur against her mouth but make no move to pull away.

"God," Elena breaths against me before sliding her tongue against mine. "I'm going to miss you so much."

"I love you." I say for what feels like the billionth time already today but it's still not enough. I don't think any amount of times saying those three words will show Elena how much I truly mean them.

"Love you too," she whispers against my lips and this time when I pull back Elena reluctantly lets me. She takes a deep breath. "Okay." Her voice shakes. "Now I have to leave."

I nod silently, swallowing hard. I step back onto the curb as she starts the engine, sending me another watery smile as her eyes fill up with tears. I blow her a kiss and her smile widens.

"Text me to let me know you've arrived safely." I find my voice, surprised to hear it sounds a lot stronger than it feels.

"I will." Elena smiles and I realize that we can't stall anymore. "Goodbye Damon."

"Goodbye Elena."

I stay on the street until I see her car turn the corner before heading back inside. I don't leave the apartment until two hours later when I receive Elena's text to let me know that she has arrived safely and that she's just starting to unpack before going to meet a couple of her friends for dinner later on tonight.

I smile, glad that she's not going to actually spend the year sulking in her room like she told me she would.

I have to work tonight, and I notice that I should probably get dressed for that soon, especially since I have to make a pit stop on the way.

It never gets any easier walking up this driveway.

No matter how many times I've done it.

I straighten myself up and ring the doorbell. It doesn't take long for the door to open and I'm met with the man who I have the most complicated and volatile relationship possibly ever known with.

Grayson eyes me warily before a stern look crosses his face. "Damon."

"Grayson." I reply with a nod, I don't bother with 'Mr Gilbert' because we both know such pleasantries between us is bullshit. "May I come in?"

I wait with baited breath as he stares me out for a few seconds before stepping back, opening the door a little wider.

I nod my head and follow him inside, shutting the door closed behind me.

I let out a loud puff of air and throw my newly received timetable across the room in frustration. My professor has kindly decided to schedule a class for late Friday afternoon, which means if I wanted to go back to Mystic Falls for the weekend it's going to take me even longer to get home due to rush hour traffic, meaning less time to spend there with Damon.

I've only been back at college for three days and already I miss him like crazy. It doesn't matter that we speak on the phone two or three times a day and that we Skype or FaceTime almost daily as well as many many text messages, naughty or otherwise, being sent back and forth throughout the day.

I miss his touch. I miss the softness of his hair. I miss the feeling of his lips pressed against mine. I miss the feeling of his breath behind my ear as he pants while being inside of me.

I check my phone with an annoyed frown, Damon hasn't replied to my last text nor has he answered my phone call. I know that he would be finished work by now, it's 11pm and he doesn't do the closing shift on Wednesdays. He would usually tell me if he picked up an extra shift or decided to cover for someone.

Today he hasn't.

I try not to worry, knowing that I'm being absolutely ridiculous and I don't want to be one of those girlfriends who need to keep tracks on their man every moment of the day.

I trust Damon.

I know that he has probably just stayed to have a drink at the bar with Alaric, or maybe he's playing video games with Klaus and he's left his phone in his jacket.

It doesn't matter. Whatever he is doing I hope he is having fun, because he deserves it.

It's selfish of me to be feeling this way.

I just miss him.

Luckily a knock on the door brings me away from my sulking thoughts and I pull myself up off my bed, ready to tell the eager freshman on the other side with his leaflets and wristbands for the latest frat party to go away.

I swing the door open and my breath is taken away.

"Hey beautiful." My hand raises to my mouth in shock. "Aren't you going to invite me in?"

I nod, a squeal escaping my lips as I leap into Damon's awaiting arms. I hug him tightly, my arms and legs wrapped around him tightly.

Damon laughs into my ear and my eyes close at the sound. His strong hold on me is everything I needed.

This is what I missed.

Damon walks us forward and kicks the door shut with his foot. I stay in his arms but pull back slightly to look at him. "I can't believe you're here! How?!" I gasp in disbelief but it's one of pure joy. He wasn't supposed to come here until Monday due to his work schedule.

He shrugs, a tiny smirk on his lips as he kisses me briefly. "I wanted to see my girl. Is that okay?"

"Yes!"

"Good." Damon wastes no more time and kisses me hard, I gasp against him but it doesn't take me long to return it just as deep. He drops my legs to the ground and I hurriedly undress him. I don't care that Bonnie could walk in at any moment, I need him inside of me now.

"Too much clothes." I murmur between kisses while struggling to remove his shirt. Damon chuckles and helps me out, slipping his Grill logo'd t-shirt over his head. I speedily pull down his jeans as he unhooks my bra, my top already long gone. Damon pushes me back, and I almost fall down on to Bonnie's bed before I redirect him to my own.

Now that would have been pushing my luck.

It seems to take forever but finally Damon's naked on time of me and I gasp, holding back screaming his name as he thrusts roughly inside of me.

I bite his neck in pleasure as his thrusts quicken. My fingers clawing at his back.

"You're…so…sexy." Damon pants breathlessly into my ear and I pull his head in front of mine to kiss him hungrily.

"Fuck…I…Damon…" I pull back from his mouth as I feel myself coming close to my climax. It doesn't take Damon long to follow my lead and before I know it we've both orgamased and lying in a naked tangled mess on top of my bed sheets.

I let out a shaky breath and lazily press a kiss on to Damon's shoulder. "I can't believe you're here." My voice is still shaking and Damon chuckles, pulling me closer against him. "Why are you here?" I ask wistfully.

I feel Damon smile against me.

"I finished my shift and Ric asked me if I was going to stay for a drink or if I was going straight home…" he begins, his voice rough and breathless. "It wasn't until I got in to my car when I realised that my home was right here, wherever you are." He taps my chest and I smile. My eyes watering with tears. Happy tears.

"I like that." I use the last of my energy to lift my head up and kiss him softly. "You're my home too."

Damon chuckles and nods his head. "I mean… I have to be back at work for 12pm tomorrow and I don't think my bank balance would be fine with me making this two hour trip every day but you know what I mean?"

I can't help but laugh at his words and nod my head in agreement. "I know baby, I know." I kiss him again softly, Damon's hand trailing down my neck soothingly.

Because Damon is right – I know exactly what he means. For the first time in my three years here, Whitmore has finally felt like home.

Now I know why it has taken so long.

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. We are almost at the end, I can't believe I have almost finished this whole Cannonball/Gravity journey.

I can't apologise enough for how long it has taken me to get this chapter updated. I have been terrible with updates for Gravity and I'm so disappointed and annoyed at myself. At first it was purely lack of motivation, I felt a bit at a loss with the story. Now it has more to do with the fact that I am currently at the other side of the world travelling between budget hostels so any kind of internet connection never mind a strong enough wifi to upload documents is very scarce! But I got there in the end.

I hope you guys are still reading and will stay until the end. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this chapter, I appreciate all of your support and your reviews which even now still keep coming in!

Thanks again.

(PS we will find out exactly what Damon wanted to see Grayson about in the next chapter).

Until next time :)