Damon's lying on his stomach, one arm down by his side, the other bent at the elbow and lying by his face. He's sleeping soundly, enjoying a rare morning off. Onyx is occupying the space between the pillows on the queen-sized bed.
Suddenly the incessant clamor of the "Exorcist" theme begins to fill the room. Snapping his eyes open, he blindly feels for it as his vision is too blurry to see straight. Finally, he finds it, he's tempted to turn it off but...
"Rebekah?"
"Took you long enough!"
"You woke me!" he mumbles, and lets a yawn escape.
It's always nice to hear Rebekah's voice but not so early in the morning, especially on the rare occasion he doesn't have to get up at the crack of dawn. When Ric mentioned a problem, he agreed to come in for a night shift to help manage the backlog, hence, he has the morning free.
"Bekah, you gonna kill me one day."
"Will I?" she sounds pleased. "I thought you'd be up by now, wanted to catch you before you left."
"Yeah, but now is my only chance to sleep today, I'm doing a night shift."
"Bad luck." She's positively amused.
"Uh, did you want anything else other than to fill in for my alarm clock?"
She actually fucking chuckles. "I'd pick you up for breakfast but I don't do breakfasts these days."
"Please, no details."
"Okay, you're clearly in no mood, I let you go back to sleep. Just a fair warning though, your dad paid a visit to Elena yesterday."
What?
Now he's definitely wide awake.
"Yes, Damon, I will...!"
She's shining and he can't take his eyes off her. She may be young, still studying but she's been a true partner. He's sure there's no other girl for him and he won't let her slip through his fingers. He can't wait till he's allowed to call her his wife.
"I love you...," she whispers just for him, the words muffled as he cradles her in his arms. He chokes to return the sentiment but she raises her eyes, so warm and understanding and he knows he doesn't need to voice what he feels.
She knows.
He planned the whole thing, romantic dinner at his house, candles, sitting by the swimming pool, lazy conversation, and then... falling to his knees to propose and start their forever right away. He imagined slow and tender lovemaking.
Well, there's plenty of that.
Except he blurts out the words at the very moment she walks inside, then carries her into his bedroom and there's nothing slow about it. Three hours later her stomach rumbles and he realizes he never finished cooking their dinner.
"It's alright, Damon... I don't want you to run away to make us something to eat." She tugs at his arm and uses him as a pillow. Eventually, they order pizza and eat it by the swimming pool before having a midnight skinny dip.
Then they make love right under the stars...
He's lying on his back, the pictures of happier times running vividly before his eyes as if it was only yesterday. He never dreams of their lovemaking, even in his sleep he never goes there.
It'd ruin him. The thought that he will never be able to make love to her again.
Back then it was their perfect night.
Except, it wasn't all...
"Well, sweetheart, you accepted my ring so now you need to meet my family."
"I met your family, at least some of them...," she squirms as she doesn't feel comfortable, discussing his relatives. She doesn't know why, or even if it was her imagination but when she met his dad and brother, they looked at her... like they were staring at a child, something she's definitely not.
It's true that the Salvatore men all have respectable occupations, Damon's an attorney in a prestigious firm, his father's a judge, and Stefan's a city engineer while she, although a tad bit younger than Damon, is still in school, studying to be a teacher.
She's pretty sure they're at the right age to fit together. His family has a bad habit of looking through her as if she doesn't matter or maybe wishing she didn't exist. For some reason, she thinks the news of their engagement won't exactly be greeted with fanfare and congratulations. Most especially not when they reveal they want to get married next summer as soon as she finishes her junior year.
Damon chuckles and messes with her hair. Right afterwards he pulls her closer to give her a quick kiss that actually turns out to last another half hour. He tells her he can't imagine his family won't be just as happy as he is to share this moment with them. It's the morning after his proposal and he says he wants to embrace the whole world, he wants to share it with his loved ones.
Good fortune presents itself when they insist they should join them for lunch when he calls them. Katherine, her husband Nik, Stefan, and his wife Rebekah will all be there... affording them the perfect opportunity to make the announcement in front of his whole family.
Perfect.
"Don't be nervous, Elena, you will love them and they will love you. Well, I have to warn you a little about Katherine, she can be... not exactly the nicest person but she's fiercely protective of her family. She has softened, maybe a little," he pinches his thumb and index finger together, "since Elijah was born. He's three and a great kid," he thinks a little caution about his overbearing big sister is appropriate.
Nervous, she sighs, knowing there's no way to get out of it. She gives him a brave smile when he squeezes her hand and follows him inside the house.
The visit turned out to be even worse than she could have imagined.
"You can't be serious, Damon! A marriage? Why? She's just a child!" Katherine gets up even though her husband tries to stop her. She props Elijah on his knee and takes a few steps forward to stand face-to-face with them. Elena decides they're going to have to set some ground rules.
"'She', is an adult and can decide for herself, just like your brother, Katherine."
Katherine is seething, there's no doubt about that. But it's not the first time today that she spoke to them with absolute disrespect and Elena's not one to be pushed around.
"Katherine's outspoken, she doesn't mean any disrespect," Damon's father tries to calm the quickly escalating situation. Elena wouldn't say 'outspoken', frankly she's a bitch but okay.
"You don't have to like what she said or how she said it but she makes a valid point? What's the hurry to rush into a marriage when you, Elena, are still in school?
"I am."
"Marriage is a big step. Shouldn't you finish your degree first and then decide what you want to do..."
"I know what I want to do, Mr. Salvatore, I'm going to be a teacher," Elena counters in an unwavering voice. "And I'm going to marry Damon so why should we wait when we're both sure?"
"Seriously, Dad, Mom, I wanted to share this special moment with all of you and instead of being excited for us, it's like we're facing a firing squad."
"Maybe if you didn't think with your..."
"Kat?" Nik stops her before his wife can finish and Elena has the urge to laugh. This is the funniest moment of all. Their news nudged Damon's sister enough to turn her into a vicious witch.
Things get better with time, Elena can defend herself and their marriage but it's not exactly what Damon's been hoping for.
Elena's sitting in her class, her fingers tented as she stares at the empty seats in front of her. Her conversation with Giuseppe plays in her mind. Did he really mean it when he apologized? He certainly seemed sincere and there wasn't a hawkish air about him this time.
To this very day, she doesn't know how she got on the wrong foot with all of them, the only thing she's guilty of is being seven years younger than Damon. Why was that so hard to accept?
Hearing the door creak, she looks up to see Kol's face peeping through the crack.
"You look kind of preoccupied... can I come in?"
"Of course," she gestures with her arm for him to join her.
He sits on her desktop, looking down at her. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"I was just thinking about Giuseppe's visit... That whole family is so hard to read sometimes. Almost the entire time we were together, it was like they couldn't wait to get me out of his life soon enough and now he's telling me..." she pauses to meet his stare. "Oh never mind, it makes no sense anyway."
"That's fine, if you want to talk about it, you know where to find me."
"I know, Kol, and I appreciate it," she offers him a genuine smile.
"Now that's what I like to see. Do you want to get something to eat later?"
"I can't, I'm going to my parents. I need to bring them up to speed on everything."
"You sure you don't want some backup?" he winks at her.
"I'll give you a buzz if I need rescuing," she laughs, their conversation is cut short when the bell rings and a group of kids pours into her classroom.
"Talk to you later," he adds on his way out.
She nods, watching him depart then moves to address the group.
As soon as Damon is done picking up the trash and starting a load of wash, he goes into Enzo's office. "Hey," he smiles when he sees his friend making root beer floats. "You got ice cream."
"I did. Have a seat," Enzo hands him one, puts the ice cream in the freezer then sits down himself.
Damon licks the foam and takes a drink, moaning at how good it tastes. He hasn't had one in years.
"Something on your mind?" Enzo asks, studying his friend's face.
"My sister-in-law called... apparently my dad had a talk with Elena. I love my family, Enzo but when I took her home to tell them she said yes, they did everything in their power to discourage us. I've forgiven them but I haven't forgotten."
"Wow, that must've been a little hard to take."
"It was, it still creates a sore spot when I dwell on it."
"Understandable," Enzo agrees, dipping his spoon into his glass to take a bite of the ice cream.
"I also had a run-in with Kol Mikaelson," Damon mentions out of the blue.
"Do tell... only if you want to that is?"
"He handed me my lunch, I guess you could say. He and Elena are very close, he let me know in not so many words that I'll have him to answer to if I hurt her again and that I need to either talk to her or walk away."
"And?"
"I think I should go to Elena but then I hear this little voice telling me just to let her alone. I've caused her so much pain..."
"Well, Damon... if you want my two cents, I think you owe it to her to not only tell your side of the story but also to let her speak. It's true, she might slam the door in your face but I don't think so, not from what you told me about her... You know when you were delivering mail, how she walked with you. I think she wants, probably needs to know what's going on with you and where the two of you stand."
Damon stares at him for a moment, "You're a pretty good listener. And as hard as it will be, I do owe her an explanation. And then the chips will fall where they may... I don't want to lose her, Enzo, I've been in love with her, almost since the moment I saw her."
"It sounds to me that your Elena is worth fighting for..."
Damon swallows what's left in his glass and nods, "More than you know..."
"Supper was good, Mom," Elena's sitting on the couch, petting her parent's golden lab, Angus. Her dad's head is in a book and her mother's crocheting.
"Thank you, dear. I wanted to make your favorites," Miranda looks up and grabs another skein of yarn.
Elena takes a swallow of her tea and then sets the cup down. "I need to tell you something," she adds firmly, her hand in Angus's fur.
Looking up from her needlework, Miranda sees the serious look on her daughter's face and sets it aside. "Grayson put the book down, Elena has something to say."
Sighing, he places a bookmark, sets it down, and puts his pipe in his mouth. "What is it?" he mumbles around the stem.
"Damon is back."
"What?" her mom's mouth drops.
"Yes, and he's my mailman. I've seen him of course but we haven't really talked. I also got a visit from Giuseppe."
"After the hell, he and his family put you through, he has some nerve," Grayson scoffs, blowing out a cloud of pipe smoke.
"You seem very calm about this, Elena... Don't tell me you're actually going to have a conversation with him. You owe him nothing, do you understand?" Miranda stares at her pointedly.
"Believe me, I appreciate your concern, I really do but I don't know what I'm going to do yet and I certainly don't know what's swimming around in his head. I think he's carrying a lot of weight on his shoulders," she smiles at the dog when he uses his tongue to take a long swipe at her arm.
"Self-imposed weight," her dad retorts, eyeing her disapprovingly.
"Dad, I'm well aware of Damon's faults, more so than anyone but I don't hate him."
"You can't be serious?" Miranda intones, from the bar where she's pouring herself a drink.
"I know that you're not his biggest fan, but do you mind laying off all the hate for my sake?"
Grayson takes another long suck on his pipe. The rich benignant cigar smoke eddies coolly down his throat; he puffs it out again in rings that breast the air bravely for a moment before dissipating. "Just don't do anything stupid, Elena."
"Your trust in me is underwhelming. Listen, I've had enough for tonight," she scoots out from under Angus and grabs her purse.
Pausing at the front door, she blurts out, "Thanks for supper," over her shoulder and pulls their front door closed behind her.
Damon leaves Enzo determined to go through with the dreaded, yet anxiously expected conversation tonight. He fears if he stalls any longer, it'll be to his own detriment. It's almost dark when he arrives at Elena's house, but it's quiet, the lights are off and his heart sinks at the realization. She isn't home. He doesn't really want to know where she could be. Probably at one of her friends? Her parents? She wouldn't be with Kol Mikaelson would she?
He contemplates what to do, he's tempted to just leave and come back tomorrow but deep down he knows it's his cowardice telling him so, the urge to postpone the conversation that may make it or break it for good. To distract himself he gets down from the porch and walks in the garden.
Strange, he doesn't feel like an intruder, he's sure she wouldn't mind. He has no idea where this certainty's coming from. He needs to get a feeling of who she became after he'd left her.
It is very true that it hurt, badly when he learned she moved away from their house and found one of her own. She even sent him the address which he tried hard to forget thinking it'd be better. He didn't of course. And he stopped reading her letters after that.
Her letters. Full of love and words of comfort that he wasn't ready to accept. The doctor thought there would be time for the letters when he started healing but he didn't believe it. He wanted to burn the letters or get rid of them anyway but he just couldn't. He's so glad he didn't.
He looks around. The apple tree is the jewel of the garden. He can picture them sitting outside, drinking in the aromas of the late summer blooms, and sinking their teeth into the delicate skin of homegrown apples. She has other plants and flowers too, including hydrangeas, tulips, and irises, they've always been his favorite, and he swallows past the lump in his throat.
It feels peaceful...
It feels like her...
He returns to the porch and again considers just leaving but suddenly he knows he won't, he can't. So he sits on the swing and waits for her to return.
It's late before she gets home, the neighborhood's mostly quiet. She's still a little angry, she should have stayed at home to try and make some sense of all the things that have happened in the past 24 hours or so, not to add to the pile by discussing her thoughts with her parents. She knew the news would raise emotions and she wasn't ready for that. It's about her... and Damon.
She just couldn't help herself and had to visit the gym, since Kol told her it was a matter of when - instead of if. The owner, Enzo looks like a nice guy, she wonders what is it that brought the two of them together. Perhaps he too has something in his past?
Either way, she didn't get any closer to Damon. She's not impatient, or skeptical but she still wishes she could do more. Or at least something.
It's also annoying that she almost feels the need to be secretive, she doesn't need any more good advice or warnings from those closest to her.
She parks the car and secures it for the night. She thinks she should have left the porch lights on, it'll be a challenge to unlock the door...
"Don't startle," a calm, familiar voice that she knows calls to her from the darkness.
Oh-my...
"Damon! You could have given me a heart attack!" But to be honest, the pounding heart is due to different things than fright. She almost asks what he's doing here, except she considers it a stupid question.
He's here.
That's all that matters.
His throat feels dry and at first, he's only able to watch her. She slowly comes closer and sits in the other corner of the swing, not touching him but close enough he could reach her if he dared.
"I was... at my parents," she comments unnecessarily, he appreciates the effort.
"I'm sorry..." That's all he can think about. How freaking sorry he is.
"Sorry for what?" she asks gently and it's the funniest thing in the world.
For everything!
"For starters, not coming that Saturday." He actually manages to chuckle.
"Why didn't you?"
He doesn't exactly want to explain this... but he must be honest anyway. As much as he's able to. "I... you must understand, I still have a hard time accepting my past mistakes. There are worse and better moments. That was one of the bad ones."
Elena shakes her head and he knows she'll accept his answer but it's not exactly true. At least not all of it.
"I also saw you the day before... standing with Kol Mikaelson and I suddenly had a feeling that I didn't belong in your life anymore..."
"That's not true, Damon. I know there must be moments you believe that but... don't I get a say, too?"
"Of course," he hurries to agree, although he's aware it was meant lightly. He looks up to see her eyes. "I'm honestly trying here, Elena..."
"Okay," she breaks the connection by looking into the darkness. It's starting to get intense. She'd gladly invite him inside but she has a feeling he feels better, more comfortable outside, free to go anytime, and not feel caged.
He's had enough of that.
"Damon, you don't have to tell me everything or anything tonight, we have all the time in the world."
It feels good. He hopes he will be able to hold onto it and not complicate things for her further. They sit next to each other for a while, might be minutes or hours, silence getting more and more comfortable by the minute. He'd gladly sit here for the rest of the night but he knows they both need to get some sleep. As if he'll be able to sleep tonight.
"It's getting late," he puts in eventually He can tell she's reluctant to let him go too which is truly heartwarming. "I'll be back. I promise."
She shortly nods, her eyes following his every move. "Good night, Damon..."
He's already on his way to the gate when on impulse he turns back to her. He can't help it.
"Did you... did you and Kol...?"
"Is this what you're worried about?"
He thinks he screwed up but she comes closer again and cups his neck forcing him to look in her eyes.
"No, never. He's been a good friend, he helped me a lot just being his silly self and under any other circumstances we could... maybe... become more. But in case you need a reminder, we're married and this ring," she taps on it with her index finger, "and the vows we spoke still mean something to me. I wouldn't do that."
He feels so relieved... He doesn't deserve this angel who refuses to give up on him even though he gave her every reason to. This time, he doesn't hesitate to touch her. Taking her hand in his, he brings it to his lips and kisses the ring, grazing her fingers in the process.
Taking a step back, he knows he should leave, otherwise, he might embarrass himself if he starts to cry.
"Stop worrying, Damon, we'll take it one step at a time."
We.
He feels like fucking flying.
"And Damon?" he almost wouldn't have heard her, as he was already on the way out. But he does and listens. "Please, call me, or just stop by. When you're ready..."
There is an undertone in her voice, pleading and poignant, that he knows he will answer.
Good night, Elena...
Thank you everyone. You're the best.
Happy Thanksgiving!
"As Long As There's Christmas" is a 2019 one-shot: "Afraid to tell her mother she's been dumped, Elena hires an actor to play her fiancé for Thanksgiving weekend at her parent's house." You can find it in my profile if you're interested.
Enjoy turkey dinner and Black Friday shopping.
Have a wonderful day and we'll see you soon with 18.
