This missing scene begins after the end of Season 3, Episode 13 – Bringing Out the Dead…

"Well he doesn't look good," Damon said as he suddenly appeared in front of them. He regretted it immediately when Elena left Alaric's side and pulled the vampire into a tight hug.

"Elena," he said soothingly, stroking her hair. "He'll be OK. I'm here if he needs me."

She nodded her head as she continued to hold on tightly for a few more seconds. As she relaxed her grip and began to back away, Damon pulled her chin up to look into her eyes.

"Are you OK?" he asked softly, seeing she was still upset.

"I had to stab him," she whispered.

"I know," Damon said, remembering what she told him when he finally called her back. "But you saved him. You always do what you have to do to save people."

He pulled her back into a hug, which she was happy to let him do. "I know it's not easy for you to do it," he continued. "I'm just sorry you were alone."

Elena shook her head this time and spoke into his shoulder. "I wasn't alone. Matt was here."

She thought she felt a slight flinch, though he didn't speak.

She back up and looked into his eyes. "He brought me home and …and was with me when we found Rick."

She could not read his expression as he said, "I'm glad you weren't alone."

Still, he didn't look right. "Damon," she began, "what's…" She was going to say wrong, but that didn't seem quite right.

"Klaus said something about you marrying Matt."

"Klaus?" she asked, not understanding.

Damon broke eye contact briefly as she said, "Klaus. Stefan and I met with him to distract him while the witches tried to open the coffin."

Elena's eyes widened as she began to look concerned. "Damon, please tell me you didn't. I've asked you not to…"

"It's fine, Elena," Damon interrupted. "It was just dinner…and hearing about his plan to turn you into breeding stock to keep the Petrova doppelganger line moving forward."

Elena still didn't understand, but she was starting to get annoyed with him. "What?..."

"Stefan did burn a little, though" he interrupted, then seeing her eyes widen again, "Not too much, hardly a singe."

Elena just bit her lip and looked at him like she didn't know what to think.

"He's fine, Elena. He even tried to thank me for saving him."

"You saved him?" Elena asked, feeling the need to close her eyes and shake her head at all of the seemingly random information he was giving her.

"I did. He even seemed grateful. It's almost like he's back."

Elena opened her eyes and shook her head again. "I didn't see it when I talked to him. He just stared …" She cut herself off, suddenly, unsure if she wanted Damon to know exactly what happened.

Damon waited a few seconds. "You saw him? What happened?"

She sighed. "I went to ask him if he killed those people – Caroline's dad and…"

Damon tried to hold back a smirk as he asked "And Stefan didn't open right up to his Elena? He just stared?"

Elena frowned. "He didn't answer at all. He just stared and asked if I had asked you if you killed anyone. Then he walked out on me."

Damon wasn't sure of her expression, was she upset with Stefan, or was it something else?

"He still loves you," Damon said flatly.

"If he does, it doesn't show," Elena said, looking away

"You know he does," Damon said, pulling her chin to face him again. "All along, he's been trying to protect you, keep Klaus from you."

"Yet Klaus is here. He got his hybrids." She released a breath and closed her eyes. "Love isn't killing dozens of innocent people to keep something away from me. It's not calling me pathetic and telling me how much he doesn't care."

She looked back up into his eyes. "It's being with me when I need it. It's protecting my family with me. It's standing beside me, no matter who or what is trying to get to me."

Elena was looking intently into Damon's eyes now. "I couldn't have done this without you."

When he didn't immediately say anything, she added, "If he loves me, he doesn't show it. Why would you say that he loves me?"

"Because, if by some miracle, I end up getting what I want in the end, I want you to know everything. I don't want you to start thinking 'maybe Stefan wasn't really all that bad'. I want you to remember."

Elena exhaled and nodded. "I will."

A noise from Alaric, who still sat a few feet away from them, pulled their eyes from each other and to him.

"He still doesn't look so good." Damon whispered as they started moving towards the teacher.

"I can't lose him." Elena replied.

"You won't," Damon reassured. "not tonight."