Dear Diary,

So after lots of hard work, four years of high school and studying every free minute available for exams the end has come. The moment I work so hard for has finally arrived and I am getting ready for graduation. In many ways the time has gone by so fast and so much has changed since I started high school four years ago. While most kids lives have changed by being part of high school sport teams, first part time jobs, first love and first heartbreak for me while I did endure some of those teenage write of passages I also went through a lot more. I lost my parents during my freshman year and life for me was never the same after that heartbreaking moment. Following the death of my parents I had to up and move from New York City, the only city I had ever known and come to Mystic Falls. Though my parents were originally from here I never traveled here much growing up.

While that change was one I was scared about it wasn't the biggest change to happen in my life. In my sophomore year a got pregnant with Claire from a night at summer camp with Damon and from that moment life was definitely going to be different then I ever expected. Walking down the halls of school I had everyone whispering and staring, because I was pregnant ad it was not an easy thing to go through.

Unfortunately many teenage mothers have no option but to drop out of school so that they can work and provide for themselves and their child but I was lucky. With the help of Damon and Jenna I was able to continue going to school knowing that I wouldn't have to be wondering where Claire's and my next meal was coming from.

I owe a lot to them because they are a big part of why I am able to stand here in my graduation gown. Being a teenage mother isn't easy and that includes me with all the help I had. The stress of school and raising a baby really took its toll on me at times as I did cry myself to sleep sometimes because I wasn't sure if I was being the best mother I could be. There were times when she was sick or fussy and I would have to juggle being there for her when I also had a project or test coming up. If I didn't do well on a test I would think I wasn't giving enough time to my studies.

As cliche as it sounds, seeing Claire's smile everyday gave me the strength to go forward and stay in school. I was doing this for our future and although things were hard now and at times I just wanted to give up, seeing her grow up was one of the reasons I needed to carry on.

So here I am graduating High School when my life isn't at all how I expected it to be when I started this journey. I owe a lot to everyone who stood by me and encouraged me to go on because I doubt I would have been able to do it without them. As I prepare to close a chapter in my life that has been heartbreaking and full of joy and love I know that whatever challengers that come my way I can tackle them and know I have people behind me to keep me going.

Elena

Standing in front of the mirror in her graduation gown Elena was thinking of everything she had done to get to this moment. She had been standing there for about ten minutes not moving or saying a word. During the week of exams it had been hard not being able to play with Claire while she was home but lucky for her Damon and Jenna did their best to keep her entertained. There were times when she would get fussy and call out for mommy and it made Elena feel so guilty about not being able to spend any time with her but it was only for a couple weeks and then she would be free to spend her whole summer with her little girl.

"How is the soon to be graduate feeling?" Damon asked as he stood in the doorway of Elena's bedroom leaning against the doorframe. She turned around to look at him as her nerves really started to sink in. Hearing him say graduate to her must of done something to her because all of a sudden she got a sickening feeling in her stomach.

She started to gag and as her hands came up to cover her mouth she took off running to the bathroom. Slamming the door behind her, Damon wasn't able to follow her and was forced to stand on the outside wondering if she was okay.

"Elena?" he called out as he knocked on the door. "Babe you all right?" he asked her a little concerned.

"I…I'm fine" came Elena's voice as she sounded a little hesitant before he could hear her throw up again. "I'll be fine," she told him again.

He could only wait in the bedroom as Elena was in the bathroom. She had being quiet all morning and although she didn't eat a lot at breakfast he didn't think much of it. After a few more minutes he heard movement coming from the bathroom and then the door slowly opened back up to the bedroom. Elena was standing there still in her graduation gown as she came back into the bedroom wiping the sweat off her face with a towel.

"I think its nerves or something," Elena told him, "It's hard to believe that this day has come."

"You have worked hard for this," he told her with a smile. "Not many would be able to deal with what you have and finish high school" he told her. Walking over to her Damon smiled as he brought his hand up to brush her hair back away from her face. Both were smiling as their eyes connected and then Damon leaned in to capture her lips.

"Ready to go?" came Jenna's voice as she stepped into Elena's room just in time to catch the two in a kiss. "Oh" she said seeing as she caught them at a bad time.

Damon quickly pulled like had been caught stealing a cookie from the cookie jar. As he backed away Damon gave a grin and scratched the back of his head. "Well I better get Claire ready to go" he said before quickly leaving the room.

Jenna nervously tucked a strand of her hair back behind her ear as she too gave a bit of a grin as Damon walked by her to leave the room and get Claire ready to go. Once he was gone Jenna looked over at Elena in her graduation gown and gave her a smile. As she stepped into the room and got closer to her niece, Jenna found herself unable to stop her eyes from watering up with pride and joy.

Elena looked so much like her mother at this very moment that Jenna found herself thinking back to Miranda's graduation and the huge smile she had on her face that day. With every day that went by Elena was looking more and more like her mother and it reminded Jenna how she would never see her daughter walk across that stage and receive her diploma.

Sitting with the rest of her classmates Elena was wearing her cap and gown as the principal made a speech on stage while friends and family watched and snapped pictures. Looking at the faces of those sitting around her it was hard to believe they were all here and that next year they would all be taking new paths in life. Not too far from where Elena sat was Caroline who was looking just as eager and excited to walk across that stage.

Elena watched as Caroline started to fidget in her gown and it reminded her of the conversation they had just before the ceremony. She remembered when they had first arrived and she was holding Claire in her arms and talking sweetly to her just as Caroline and Tyler walked over both looking fairly annoyed with the other. "What's got you two all mad?" Elena asked as she eyed the two who wouldn't even look at each other.

"He called me fat!" Caroline snapped in anger.

"I did not!" Tyler said as he rolled his eyes at how Caroline seemed to of forgotten everything else that had lead up to her insisting he said she was fat.

"Claire honey as you grow up don't listen to boys they can be very hurtful" Caroline said as she leaned in to give Claire a kiss on the cheek.

"And Claire save yourself the stress and don't buy a full body mirror" Tyler advised as he shook his head at how emotional Caroline was getting over the little things.

"I asked him how I looked in my dress because it was fitting differently then when I had bought it and his response was don't worry about it because you are wearing a robe over top of it" Caroline mimicked in her best Tyler impression while he just rolled his eyes at him.

"And at no point did the word fat come from me" Tyler said.

"A simple you look great would have worked" Caroline told him as she crossed her arms. "Now I have to go one stage knowing that I look horrible in this dress!" Caroline snapped at him.

"No one is even going to see the dress!" Tyler snapped back still not sure why they were even fighting about this.

"Men are hopeless" Caroline said as she rolled her eyes and turned on her heels to leave and join the rest of their classmates.

"And you are driving me crazy!" Tyler called out as he followed behind his difficult girlfriend who seemed to be extra emotional today.

Now back in the present as Elena sat with her classmates and waiting to walk across the stage as they were now starting to announce the graduates. Calling them by name and handing their diploma, Elena look out into the crowd as Damon had Claire sitting on his lap and would have her wave to her and offer her one of her cute little smiles.

She also looked over at Bonnie and with a smile Elena couldn't believe how much better her friend was doing. With Connor out of her life she was finally getting back to her old self and taking a step back from her modeling dream so she could focus on getting better and finishing school. Lately Bonnie was smiling a lot more and after everything she had been through Elena was happy to see her best friend doing so well.

Stefan was there as well and Elena couldn't help but think back to when she had first met Stefan. Her first day of school in a new town and he was so generous and helpful to her. He became such a good friend that she could count on and his relationship with Damon had improved so much in the last three years. When she had met them they didn't get along and were always fighting but both had grown so much closer over the years and their uncle Zach had even commented about the change in them.

While Stefan had first had an infatuation with her a relationship beyond friendship was never possible after she got pregnant but instead of casting her aside and treating her badly like some of the other kids, he stood by her and became a friend she needed and now was an amazing uncle to Claire.

In the last year Stefan had even found love of his own with Rebekah and while she was away at boarding school in England both him and Elena were able to lean on each other because in a way they both understood the challenges of a long distance relationship at times. Now as Rebekah sat in the audience watching as Stefan prepared to graduate it made Elena happy that he found someone as special as her.

When they finally called Elena's name she couldn't stop herself from smiling as she slowly got to her feet and started to climb the steps on the stage to accept her diploma. Telling herself not to trip under her breath, Elena gave a smile as she looked over at the crowd as Jenna, Jeremy, Alaric and Damon stood up to clap for her. Claire too was clapping her hands and with a smile Elena waved to her daughter, which got Claire to wave back happily.

All of a sudden whether it was the nerves or something, Elena felt a bit ill and much like she did earlier. She didn't want to ruin this moment so did her best to push forward as she was handed her diploma. Everyone started to cheer and with a smile Elena gave one last wave before she left the stage and quickly made her way to the bathroom without anyone suspecting anything.

Two days after graduation Elena was lying in bed and felt worse then she did during her graduation. This was not the way she wanted to start her summer off especially since she hadn't been able to spend a lot of time with Damon and Claire while she had studied.

"MOMMY, MOMMY!" came the excited little voice of Claire as she came running into the room and jumped onto her mom's bed as she lay under the covers. "Tottage mommy, go now!" Claire chirped, as she knew that they were going on a trip to the cottage. For the last couple days they had been packing for a weekend away at the cottage with everyone and Claire was super excited about it. "Tottage mommy" Claire said again doing her best to say cottage.

"Are you excited?" Elena asked her as she slowly sat up still feeling really sick.

"I got suitcase" Claire told her and just like that Claire was off the bed and running out of the room to get her suitcase just as Damon was coming through the door.

Watching her run off Damon gave a smile and then looked over at a very sick Elena. "You know we don't have to go, they will understand" Damon told her knowing that she had been sick for the last few days.

"No Claire is really excited, and I'll be fine" Elena told him. "Maybe fresh air will be good for me," she added with a weak smile.

"Sure, but sleep, chicken noodle soup and me as your doctor would also be good for you" Damon said with a smirk as he sat down on the bed beside her and teasingly ran his fingers up and down her arm.

"Oh that does sound good" Elena said with a moan.

"Say the word and I will make it happen," he said with a smile and a kiss on the top of her warm forehead.

Elena gave a bit of a chuckle as she leaned into Damon's touch as he wrapped his arms around her. As the two sat on the bed together they remained silent and just enjoyed the moment before Claire came stumbling into the room while she dragged her own purple and pink suitcase.

"Tottage!" Claire chirped to her parents, as she stood in the doorway obviously ready to go.

"Well some one is really looking forward to the trip," Elena said as she pulled herself out from Damon's embrace so she could pull her hair up in a bun and get ready to go like the others.

Getting to her feet and walking around her bedroom Elena still felt pretty sick but hoped that if she took some Tylenol she would feel better. "Its only for the weekend and besides it is to celebrate graduation and only a couple weeks until Jenna's wedding" Elena said while Damon still sat on the bed.

Just then Jenna came to stand in the doorway looking for stressed and overwhelmed. "Tell me again why I agreed to this trip with only two weeks until my wedding?" she asked looking like she hadn't slept in days.

"Better escape route if you get cold feet, we would never find you in the woods" Damon teased.

"Thanks Damon" she said as she rolled her eyes.

"So you can relax," Elena said offering a better explanation while she zipped up her suitcase.

"Right because with the wedding and everything else on my mind I am going to be able to relax, and suntan" Jenna said in a sarcastic tone.

"If it makes you feel better Caroline your wedding planner is coming and will be freaking out just as much if not more than you" Damon said with a chuckle. "I mean if I understand correctly she came over here freaking out about how the wedding was ruined because the ribbon on the flower bouquet didn't match the ribbon on the chair or something."

"Don't remind me, she came in balling about how everything was ruined and before I even knew what was wrong I was in tears too" Jenna said as she thought back to last night when Caroline came over to break the news that the colors of the ribbon were not exactly the same.

"Mommy come, come!" Claire chirped as she tugged on the hem of Elena's shirt as she pulled her towards the door.

"Alright lets go" Elena replied with a giggled as she picked up the suitcase.

Damon could see that although Elena was doing her best to put on a smile for Claire, it was obvious she wasn't feeling well at all. Getting up from the bed he took a couple steps towards her to take the suitcase from her. "Here I'll take it, I'll pack up the car and you can finish getting ready" Damon told her and with a smile Elena nodded and started to make her way into the bathroom to change.

As Damon headed out of the room behind Claire and Jenna he saw Jenna let out a big yawn while she picked up Claire to carry her downstairs. "I see wedding planning is keeping you up," Damon said with a chuckle.

"Honestly as excited as I am for this wedding I am exhausted all the time now and it will be nice when it is all over and I can relax" Jenna told him with a sigh. Things had been so hectic in the house lately with the wedding planning, graduation and not to mention Jenna having to come to terms with the fact that come fall Elena would be leaving for college and like any parent or guardian it was a scary thought of not being there everyday for her.

"Oh can you get Jeremy he is suppose to be helping Ric pack up the car" Jenna told Damon as she made her way down the stairs with Claire and her suitcase.

"Yeah sure" Damon said as he watched them make it to the bottom step before turning around and heading back down the hall to Jeremy's room. The door was closed and Damon had only seen Jeremy once when he first arrived at the house this morning because for some reason he was hiding away in his room. Coming to the door he knocked twice before calling out to the kid and then opening up the door wide. He was caught off guard by the sight in front of him as he stared at Jeremy who had his tongue down Bonnie's throat. The two quickly jumped back when they saw Damon enter and while Bonnie's face turned red in embarrassment of getting caught, Jeremy looked a little pissed.

"What the hell man?" Jeremy yelled. "Ever thought of waiting for me to say you can enter my room?"

"Well of all the things that I imagined walking into when I opened the door, your tongue down your sister's best friend's throat not one of them" Damon stated as Bonnie's face seemed to go even redder as she couldn't get herself to look at him as she bit her bottom lip.

"Well just wanted to let you know we will be leaving soon, so best you keep your clothes on," Damon teased.

"Oh my god" Bonnie said as she turned away from Damon knowing that soon her and Jeremy's secret was going to get out.

"Ok got it man!" Jeremy snapped as he ran over to slam the door on Damon before he could try to humiliate them any further.

When the door was slammed in his face, Damon gave a smirk as he turned on his heels just as Elena was coming out of her bedroom. "What's going on?" Elena asked him as she caught the smirk on his face.

"Oh nothing you need to worry about" he told her as he wrapped an arm around her while they made their way down the stairs. "Feeling better?" he asked her as his arm pulled her a little closer to him.

"Yeah I'm fine" she answered with a nod and then leaned her head on Damon's shoulder.

Making their way outside Ric was loading up the car just as a couple of other vehicles pulled up in front on the house. In one car Stefan hopped out along with Rebekah who was snacking on some crackers as they walked up the driveway. Both had smiles on their faces as they were holding hands all ready for the weekend trip to the cottage.

When Claire saw her uncle Stefan she let out a squeal and started running over to him with a huge smile on her face. Stefan couldn't help but chuckle at his niece who came running towards him. Opening up his arms he knelt down to catch her as she wrapped her little arms around his neck. "How's my girl?" Stefan asked her as he held her tight. "Can I get a kiss?" he asked her and then Claire puckered up her lips and gave him a kiss.

"Oh she is so adorable" Rebekah said with a smile as she stood beside Stefan and started to rub the two-year olds back while she blabbered away to her uncle Stefan.

In the other car Caroline and Tyler stepped out and the two seemed to be bickering yet again. "Look Caroline how am I suppose to answer a question about your weight if yes means you're fat and no mean I'm lying?" Tyler asked her.

"You know I have been really worried lately and you are not helping matters!" Caroline told him.

"Just tell me the right answers and I will say it every time" Tyler told her.

"You are unbelievable!" she snapped at him in anger as she crossed her arms over her chest.

Rolling his eyes Tyler decided it was best just to leave it alone and not make anything worse by talking to her. Instead he went to stand over by Stefan where it was safe while Caroline went to talk to Elena while Damon was helping load the car with Ric.

"I don't know what is wrong with her lately but all she seems to want to talk about it her weight" Tyler said as he stood next to Stefan.

"Maybe she is worried about her dress for the wedding fitting" Rebekah suggested

"It's not her wedding" Tyler said as he shook his head.

"She will still want to look nice," Rebekah told him as she roll her eyes at him. "Be a little more sensitive towards her she is just a little emotional right now."

"Well I hope this isn't a permanent thing because she is driving me insane," Tyler said still not liking the insecure and emotional Caroline.

As everyone was just about ready to go Jeremy and Bonnie came out of the house with their bags already to go. Elena turned to look at them coming out of the house and was a little shocked at first. "Oh I didn't realize you were here," Elena said to Bonnie as she came over to stand with her and Caroline.

"Yeah I got here while you were changing" Bonnie said as a cover story. Looking over at Jeremy for a split second she gave him a smile. She quickly looked away not ready for everyone to know about her feelings for Jeremy and turned to join in on the conversation between Elena and Caroline.

"Ok who is ready to head out?" Jenna said once all the cars were packed up and ready to go.

The group nodded and started to head towards the cars they would be ridding in. Damon went over to take Claire from Stefan so that he could get her in her car seat. Elena waved to Caroline and Bonnie as they headed over to the car Tyler was driving and then she got in beside Claire's car seat. The drive was going to be about an hour and Elena hoped that Claire wouldn't get too fussy. Reaching into her diaper bag she pulled out Claire's sippy cup and banana slices to keep her preoccupied as they headed out and drove to the cottage.

As the arrived at the cottage the cars pulled up just between the house and the lakeshore. The crystal blue water of the lake looked so calm under a bright blue sky, which was looking promising as a good weekend. The trees were covered in leaves offering shade in some areas to the hot sun and also sheltered the singing birds that sang with the whistling wind.

The last time they had all been up here was Christmas and while they all had fun then, they were looking forward to swimming in the lake. As they stepped out of the vehicles and on the gravel driveway everyone stretched and with smiles on their faces were glad they were here.

As Caroline stepped out of the car it was easy to see that her and Tyler had bickered a lot on the way up and the evidence was also on Jeremy and Bonnie's faces as they were both thankful to get out of the car.

"This weight thing is really bothering her, she is all concerned her bathing suit isn't going to fit." Bonnie said as she came to stand by Elena.

"She look amazing, why is she getting all upset over this, she is never this sensitive about her weight" Elena asked quietly so Caroline didn't hear. "How is Jeremy?" Elena asked and could see that the question was making Bonnie nervous.

"What do you mean? Do you think something is wrong with him?" Bonnie asked trying to figure out what Elena knew and if Damon had spilled.

"Nothing, you guys were together on the way down here" she replied as she shrugged her shoulders. She could see that Bonnie seemed to relax by her reply but still looked nervous as she bit her bottom lip. "You okay?"

Bonnie looked at her friend and did her best to stay cool and tried not to give anything away. "Me? I'm fine, everything is good," she said hoping the answer would satisfy and curious Elena.

"Okay" was all Elena answered before she walked off and headed into the cottage with some of the others.

Damon was rolling his eyes as he unbuckled Claire from her car seat and looked over at Alaric who as getting out the suitcases. "This is going to be quite the interesting weekend for sure," he said with a sigh. Lifting Claire up and setting her on her feet the little girl took off running and playfully squealed.

"Why is that?" Ric asked not sure what he was missing.

"Well Elena is sick, Caroline seems to be annoyingly weight cautious, I have a feeling Rebekah eaten a number of the snacks on the way up here, Jenna is stressed and extra emotional and can't forget Bonnie and her secret she thinks is a secret."

"You mean about Bonnie and Jeremy dating?" Alaric asked.

"Yeah, they seemed to think that none of us have noticed when really we all know and are waiting for them to break the news and spare us all the lame excuses as to why they are hanging out so much" Damon said as he kept a close eye on Claire as she played with the stones on the ground. "Anyway point is if we are going to survive this weekend we better be drinking."

"Damon you realize you are underage and I use to be your teacher," Alaric reminded him. While Alaric had become quite close to Damon since he started dating Jenna he still was a little weird to hang out with all his students like he had agreed to do this weekend.

"Trust me I think the student teacher type relationship came to a end when I caught you running around with whip cream and in your boxers" Damon reminded him as he recalled the incident back when Claire was just 2 weeks old.

"God don't remind me of that", Ric said with a mumbled as he remembered how humiliating that night had been for him. Picking up the suitcases he headed towards the cottage knowing that the women were deciding on who got which room.

While everyone had headed inside Damon went running over to Claire and swung her around in the air. The little girl let out of squeal of joy as she was spun around like an airplane. As he lowered her to plant kisses on her cheeks and blow on her stomach, Claire couldn't stop smiling. This was a sound Damon loved to hear and he was so looking forward to being able to hear it everyday, not just for the summer but also in the fall when him and Elena attended the same college.

They were already looking for apartments for their little family as well as daycare service that wasn't too far from the campus. These were just some of the decisions the two would have to make but right now they were looking forward to enjoying the summer as a family.

Kicking off his shoe as well as Claire's little shoes, Damon walked along the sandy beach shore of the lake while holding Claire's little hand. As the cool crisp water flowed over their feet, Claire started kicking her little legs and watching the water splash. Looking down at her Damon realized that this was the first time Claire had played in the lake water. Kicking his feet too the water came up and splashed Claire.

"No daddy" Claire after he got her all wet.

"No? No!" Damon repeated as he dangled the little girl in his arms and let her little feet run through the water as he spun her around. In response Claire was giggling uncontrollably and there was a sparkle in her eyes as they played in the water.

"What is daddy doing to you" Elena called out as she was walking toward the two playing in the water.

"Nothing" Damon laughed as he set Claire back on her feet.

"Splashing mommy" Claire said as turned to look at her daddy and started kicking her feet in the water to get Damon wet.

Elena laughed as she watched Claire try to get her daddy back for splashing her but all that kicking caused her to lose her balance and tumbled into the water and getting her whole outfit wet.

"Oh no" Elena laughed as she finally made her way over to her family and help Claire to get back on her feet. Once she was back on her feet both Damon and Elena followed not too far behind her as she walked along the sand. They both watched, as Claire would lift her feet up and look down at her feet after stepping on the sand and Elena realized that it was a new texture for the two year old to walk on and get sand in between her toes.

"So feeling better?" Damon asked as he wrapped his arm tightly around her.

"Yeah … I'm better," she told him with a nod as she cuddled close to him as they followed behind Claire while she played in the sand. "Anyway I still can't get anything out of Bonnie," she added with a sigh.

"Trust me I don't think her and Jeremy will be ending anytime soon" Damon said with chuckle.

"Why what did you find out?"

"Nothing I just walked in on something" he said as he winked at her.

Elena thought about it for a second and then shook her head. Although she didn't have a problem with her brother and best friend dating she didn't want to hear or picture the two of them together. "I don't want to know," she told him thinking it was best to just be happy for them and not get into any details.

"I don't know why they won't just admit it, I mean it has been obvious for weeks that something is going on and every hint I give her or him to tell me that just shrug it off" she told him as she looked towards the cottage as the two were coming out down to the beach. Both were smiling as they talked but were sure to stay at arms length thinking that the feeling they had for each other weren't written all over their faces.

"I'm sure they will crack eventually," Damon told her with a smile. "That or you will walk in on them naked," he teased knowing that the image would make her cringe.

"Shut up" she said as she got grossed out and tried not to think about Bonnie and her brother that way. Pushing Damon away from her she had chills running through her body and Damon just seemed to find it hilarious. "You are such a ass something times," she snapped at him.

Damon just continued to laugh and stood on the dock while she kept her distance and glared at him. Soon Bonnie and Jeremy joined the two, as they reached the beach and acted like nothing was up between them. It wasn't long before the others joined them down by the beach and the gang was able to start relaxing and enjoy some time in the sun. It had been a long couple weeks with lots going on and things would just get even more hectic with the wedding.

As the girls decided to tan on the dock the guys went for a swim except for Damon who was taking a sandy Claire into the cottage to get her cleaned up a bit. The little girl had so much fun playing in the sand and water that now it seemed her diaper had collected half a beach and was weighing the little girl down. Taking her into the bathroom he got her clean up and into a bathing suit. The little girl seemed extra chatty with him and also a little curious as she opened up all the cupboards and drawers as Damon was cleaning up. At one point she made her way over to the garbage bin and started pulling out used tissues and tossing them on the floor. Catching her in the acted Damon came over to her just as she was reaching in and pulling out a rectangular box. "What are you doing in there?" he asked her and as Claire turned around to look at him she held a box in her hand that made Damon's heart skip a beat.

His eyes went wide as he took the box from Claire and read the word Pregnancy Test. His heart was beating faster now and his hands were shaking as he opened the box and saw the testing inside. Taking it out he read what it said and found himself speechless. The test was positive and that meant someone here was pregnant.

Uh oh so who do you think is pregnant? Thanks for reading.