Chapter 16

Damon closes his eyes and savors the feel of the chill water cooling his hot skin. A cold shower is just what he needs after his latest encounter with future Elena. She left with Stefan and her present-day counterpart a little while ago. Caroline was anxious to get rid of everyone, but Damon couldn't blame her. He still can't believe how strongly he reacted to Elena or how she seemed to react to him. He can only imagine what could've happened if Caroline hadn't interrupted. And Damon has quiet the imagination. Of course, even if Caroline hadn't interfered, Stefan and the other Elena certainly would have.

The other Elena would've been traumatized because she'd never dream of acting on her attraction to Damon. She prefers to pretend it doesn't exist and channel everything into borderline animosity. As much as he hates being on the receiving end of the brunette's wrath, she is really sexy when she's angry. Of course, she always looks gorgeous, so maybe he could do without the venomous glares and snarky comments. Not to say he doesn't deserve her ire for some of his latest decisions, but Elena is supposed to be all about forgiving people. When is it his turn to be forgiven? Again. Oh, right. He's an idiot. Just when she managed to forgive him of all his nefarious deeds, he does the most idiotic and self-destructive thing possible.

And the moment another version of Elena shows up and treats him a with semblance of kindness, he latches on to it like a life preserver. How sad is he? How can he love someone and then settle for a duplicate? Damon should want the original version. He should want the real Elena, not her doppelgänger.

But I don't want her doppelgänger.

Doppelgängers are different people that happen to look the same, like twins. Katherine and Elena are nothing alike other than their appearance, but future Elena is the same person as his Elena. She's just older. Does that mean Damon loves Elena more because he's attracted to her no matter her form? Or does it mean he loves her less because future Elena is not present-day Elena?

Damon presses his forehead against the glass of his shower and expels a frustrated sigh. This is too complicated. It was complicated to begin with due to this unholy triangle, but time travelers crank up the complexity meter. Hell, that goofy Tom Cruise movie 'Vanilla Sky' was easier to follow than this cluster. Damon knows he'll never have Elena. He's managed to gleam that much from AU Thelma and Louise. But eventually he'll have her friendship, and that's more than he has now.

Although, her reaction earlier wasn't that of a friend. She wanted him just as much as he wanted her. He could see it in her eyes, in her heavy breathing, and the way her body quivered against him. The memory of her form pressed against him ignites his desire again. He lifts his face to the cool water and lets his memories wash away.

What does it mean?

It's obvious that Elena desires Damon, which is only natural. He hasn't met a straight woman that didn't find him attractive. Why wouldn't they? He's the eternal bad boy. And he looks damn good in a suit. That's not the point. Damon knows that Elena is attracted to him. She always has been, but she's made it clear that it doesn't matter because she loves Stefan. She would never betray Stefan like that. She's not Katherine. Has that changed in the future? At some point, does Elena decide to have both Salvatore brothers?

No, Elena would never do that, Damon decides. Besides, Caroline said that when Elena made her choice, I eventually moved on.

Damon falls still as his brain recognizes something in that thought that isn't right. It's like struggling to find a word that's at the tip of his tongue. Every time he gets close, it slips away. So Damon examines the statement and the memory of Caroline making the claim. Was she lying? No, Caroline's a terrible liar.

At some point Elena makes a choice between Stefan and Damon, but since he's known Elena, she has always been firmly on team Stefan. She's never even considered Damon as an option. Does that change at some point? Does Damon ingratiate himself enough with Elena that she develops feeling for him. Enough to compete with her feelings for Stefan? Then an odd thought occurs to Damon, one he hasn't allowed himself to consider because the pain of being wrong could overwhelm him. He snatches the thought from its free-range scuttle across his mind and squashes it. There's no way. Just no way. She loves Stefan. It will always be Stefan. Right? Damon runs through everything he's learned from the time travelers.

"Right, Stefan and Elena are still dating."

Still dating? As in, they aren't anymore? Damon wonders.

Caroline had mumbled the words under her breath. He wasn't supposed to hear them. Why didn't he responded? Because at the time, he didn't know that Elena would eventually turn. Damon was under the impression that Elena didn't want to be a vampire. If Elena never turned, eventually Stefan and Elena would no longer be dating. Either she would outgrow him, or she would die.

If Elena never dies and can never outgrow Stefan, they should still be dating. Unless they broke up. A small thrill zips through Damon, and a tiny sprout erupts from seed of hope buried under a mountain of ash. It wilts when Damon remembers the daylight ring on Elena's ring finger. It was meant to hold the place of a wedding ring. The same for Caroline.

If Stefan and Elena are married, then they aren't dating. Damon clenches his jaw. That's why he can't let his emotions get away with him. He must stay focused.

"Ugh, Whitmore? Couldn't do any better?"

"Hey, I had to stay close for Jeremy. And my boyfriend."

So they were still dating in college. Not married yet.

"When you made your choice clear, he moved on. Yeah, it was awkward for a while, but he respected your choice and moved on."

Elena has already made her choice clear, but Damon's made no attempt to move on. He may not be actively pursuing Elena, but he certainly isn't letting her go. How much clearer can she make her choice in Stefan?

Unless…Damon stops himself from completing the thought. No, he won't kid himself. He refuses to dangle the hope of Elena just to have it ripped away. It hurts too much. He's connected the dots, and they easily line up in Stefan's favor. Everything points toward Saint Stefan and Elena spending eternity together.

Except Elena. She's done nothing to indicate an interest in Stefan since her arrival. Sure, she's been nice and friendly, but not overly concerned with him. Is that because she doesn't want to upset present-day Elena? Or some other reason? If he didn't know Elena before her future version arrived, her behavior would convince Damon that she's more interested in the bad brother than the good one. But he does know her, and there's just no way.

There's no way the Elena he knows would reach for his help over Stefan. She wouldn't take comfort in his arms and cuddle against him. She wouldn't laugh and tease him over cupcakes. She wouldn't ever consider running her hands through his hair as though it's something she does every day. Elena would never place her fingertips on his lips or press her body against him. And Damon is back to square one as he adjusts the water temp to icicle setting.

Damon growls as he struggles to piece everything together. As a last resort, he cautiously allows his mind to explore alternative options. The options that leave his heart exposed and vulnerable. As scary as it is to consider, Damon hasn't actually heard anyone confirm that Elena and Stefan are together in the future. Yes, she dated Stefan. Yes, she's probably married. Yes, she made a choice between the two Salvatore brothers. What if Stefan and Elena eventually broke up? What if she married someone else? What if she chose Damon?

Damon places a hand on the shower glass to steady himself as he considers the implications of his revelation. Does Elena fall in love with him? Does she choose Damon over Stefan? Are they married?

No, Damon shuts it down. No, Elena hates me. There's no way she'd every fall in love with me. She loves Stefan. It will always be Stefan.

Damon cuts off the water with a jerk and steps out the shower. He dries and wraps the towel around his waist, then he glances up at his reflection in the mirror and wonders about a life with Elena at his side. Damon imagines her perched on his bathroom counter much like she was in the kitchen. Except this time, she'd be wearing only a towel and a gorgeous smile that goes on for miles. She'd look up at him and beckon him closer, so she could wrap her arms around his neck and pull him in close for a kiss. Damon would press his body against hers and enjoy the feel of her silky smooth legs wrapping around his waist.

Damn it! I'm acting like a horny teenager.

He blames future Elena for getting him all riled up. Maybe he should go to the Grill. Damon always manages to find what he needs to take the edge off in that small-town bar, no matter if it's a drink, a meal, or a woman to entertain his evenings. Decision made, Damon stalks out of his bathroom into his bedroom to find an uninvited guest.

"Caroline," Damon nearly jumps out of his skin upon seeing her draped over his bed. To cover his surprise, he feints modesty and grabs at his towel. "Towel…knock…"

"Damon, no one cares. No," the blonde says with a mocking sneer from her comfy pose on the four-poster bed. She seems to take more joy in the statement than expected, but he decides not to comment.

"In the future, how often do you sneak into my room while I'm naked?"

"Eww, never," Caroline makes a gagging face before continuing. "No one wants to see that. How about you put some clothes on, so we can talk?"

"About what?"

"The future, duh."

"So talk." Damon tugs the towel from his waste and flashes Caroline. She cringes and slaps a hand over her eyes.

"Damon…ugh…why do I even bother," she says under her breath. He smirks at her reaction and realizes that she's not surprised by his behavior. At least the future version of him still enjoys antagonizing the blonde.

"Shouldn't you be scouring this miserable town for your demon spawn?" He asks as he saunters into his walk-in closet in search of clothes.

Caroline signs, dropping her hands to her lap, and listens to Damon riffling through his designer wardrobe. "It's no use. I won't find them until they want to be found. Cloaking spells are kind of their thing. At this point, the only thing I can do is wait."

"So why are you waiting in my room?"

Caroline smiles as she hears him fighting to pull on a pair of pants and decides to have a little fun with him.

"Your room? Oh, right. I guess it's still yours for now."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Damon asks, poking his head out of the closet as he slips on a black belt.

"In about a decade, give or take, you'll give everything you own to me, including your half of the boarding house."

"What? That's ridiculous. Why in hell would I do that?"

"You lost a bet."

"What kind of bet?" Damon steps out to the closet wearing only jeans and carrying a dress shirt.

"A bet you were certain you'd win," Caroline says with smug smile. "But you didn't."

"Do you care to tell me what the bet was about?" Damon asks, slipping into his dark shirt with a scowl. Caroline's expression turns serious, and she slips to the edge of the bed to hang her legs over the side.

"If I tell you, you might avoid making the bet."

"Of course I will. I like my collection of valuables. But mostly, I don't like the idea of losing to you," he says.

"Oh, I know." She smiles fondly at him, which catches Damon off guard. Again he's struck by her familiarity toward him. It's like she's used to his snide remarks and bad attitude and doesn't take it personally.

"The problem, Damon," Caroline says with a sigh, "is that changing even the smallest detail can have drastic effects on the future."

"What do you care? You said nothing here will affect your timeline."

"It's not my timeline that I'm worried about," she says.

"What the hell does that mean, Caroline? I don't speak time traveler."

"It means, that I have to tell you something, Damon. And how you react will change your timeline. It will affect not only your future, but your brother's too. It'll affect everyone around you. So I need you to not be a dick about it, okay?"

Damon watches Caroline jump from the bed and pace across his bedroom as she rambles. She's nervous about something, and he's tired of being patient.

"Out with it, Blondie."

"Not until you promise that you won't say a word to anyone else. Especially, your Elena and Stefan. I have to figure out how to tell them. I've been racking my brain, but everything I come up with ends with someone getting hurt. And it's not like I don't have enough to deal with, but my Elena is with your Elena digging up old memories. Eventually, one of those memories is going bust our secret wide open. Stefan and Elena may be the king and queen of denial, but they're not stupid. Finding out that way is probably the worst way…"

"Stop." Damon grabs Caroline by the shoulders. "Tell me what's going on. I'm happy to play the bad guy and rip off the proverbial band-aid."

"You can't. This isn't just about them. It's about you too. If you don't handle it right, everything will be ruined, and we'll all be miserable."

"Because the future is all rainbows and unicorns?" Damon says, dropping his arms to step away from Caroline.

"Far from it. But Stefan and I…you and Elena…were all happy. I mean, as happy as four vampires can be in the real world."

"What are you talking about, Caroline," Damon asks, barely above a whisper. He's anxious to hear the clear and undeniable truth because her cryptic words are driving him crazy. He's tired of fighting off the sliver of hope that keeps breaking free from his doubt. He ignores his increased heart rate at the possibilities racing through his mind. One idea keeps poking at the butterflies in his stomach no matter how hard he tries to drown it out.

"Stefan and Elena broke up. They aren't together anymore."

Caroline watches Damon as she finally reveals the big secret. She's not certain how this Damon will respond. He could freak out about the possibility of actually having what he wants most in the world and completely self-destruct. A Salvatore murder spree is not something Caroline can handle at the moment. Of course, Damon could also respond to the confirmation that Elena will eventually choose him over Stefan with a cruel satisfaction. Flaunting his impending success in front of Elena and Stefan could drive them closer together and destroy his chances of winning the doppelgänger's heart. Neither option would affect her timeline in the least, but Caroline wants everyone she loves in this timeline to be happy. With the exception of a few colossal events, the Salvatore family has been pretty happy over the last two centuries. If she can maintain the future, she will.

Caroline watches Damon's reaction to her statement. She needs to nip any destructive responses in the bud. Of all the paths she'd expected Damon to take, Caroline never considered the possibility that he might not react at all. For an instant, his face softens to the kind, innocent young man she met several decades ago during a trip in time to the nineteenth century. The expression of hope and disbelief on Damon's face disappears so fast that anyone who'd known him less than two centuries would never have noticed the change. Instead, they would see only the hard mask of indifference. But Caroline has known this man far too long to miss the hope hidden behind his sarcastic smirk and cold blue eyes.

He doesn't believe me.

"Yeah, they 'broke up' yesterday, in fact," Damon says using air quotes, and Caroline frowns. "I bet you couldn't tell from all the cuddling and hand holding earlier. Of course, I'm fairly certain that was a fake break up. But the one from several weeks back wasn't fake. You know, when Elena claimed she couldn't handle the whole vampire thing. Then when she changed her mind, Saint Stefan decided Elena would be safer if he walked away. Only, he came right back at the smallest provocation. Those two are so hell bent on being martyrs, I'm betting they break up a dozen times over the span of their epic love story."

Caroline's jaw drops at Damon's rant and then slowly she smiles.

"Well, you're not wrong." When Damon glares at her, Caroline continues. "They did break up several times, and they both have a tendency to put their loved ones before themselves, but that's one of the reasons we love them."

Caroline's eyes drop to the floor, and she smiles as though reliving a fond memory. Damon watches her soft expression. He wonders if her smile is for 200 years of friendship with Elena or something deeper with Stefan. Maybe Caroline's claim that the happy couple's latest break up is permanent is only the blonde's wishful thinking. Damon certainly won't believe the claim without hard proof. They're vampires for crying out loud. Stefan and Elena could break up a hundred times, they'd still have an eternity to work it out.

It'll always be Stefan.

Shaking his head, Damon opens his mouth to tease Caroline about her obvious affection for the younger Salvatore brother. He can't imagine that her husband is happy about her little crush. Then again, he's probably more concerned about the Original hybrid stalking his wife. Before Damon can voice his taunts and abrasive accusations, he stumbles on Caroline's next words.

"I mean, that's how Elena eventually died, saving someone she loved."

"What?" The pain in his tone catches Caroline by surprise, and she snaps her eyes to meet his swirling, blue gaze. She regrets her words and rushes to reassure Damon.

"But she survived, sort of. Luckily, she had your blood in her system, so once again, you saved her from herself."

Damon takes a moment to absorb the new information, and Caroline watches the frown lines on his face with concern. She'd hoped for a more positive response from Damon. Not about Elena's unplanned death, of course, but about his future with said doppelgänger. It's like he hasn't quiet grasped the concept yet.

"So I sired Elena?" He asks. When Caroline nods, he continues. "Why didn't Stefan?"

"It wasn't intentional, and it's super complicated. It basically comes down to the fact that you're a blood slut that can't keep track of his own blood donations or theft."

"Theft?"

"It doesn't matter, Damon. The important part is that Elena is a vampire, and she broke up with Stefan."

"Why is that such a big deal to you?" Damon turns away from her and pulls out the hideaway bar in his bookshelf. "Do you think just because they have a little hiccup in their romance, Stefan will forget about Elena and suddenly notice you, Caroline? That's kind of pathetic, don't you think?"

Caroline watches Damon with absolute confusion. She's not certain how to respond to the barb. "I don't remember you being this slow."

Damon pauses mid-pour to glare at Caroline and sucks on his cheek. "Does it bother your husband? The fact that you're in love with Stefan."

"No, not at all," Caroline says with a smug smirk. She opens her mouth to add a snappy comeback but pauses as it hits her. "I'm standing here trying to figure out why you're acting this way, but it's my fault. I haven't actually said it, have I? You're so…damaged…you can't let yourself truly consider the possibility, can you?"

Damon doesn't say anything. He just glares at the blonde and brings his glass to his lips to savor the taste of his precious bourbon.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't clear enough earlier. So let me be crystal: Stefan and Elena broke up two centuries ago because she fell in love with you, you great, big dick."

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