It's a typical Friday evening when Elena decides to surprise her boyfriend, Matt, with a home-cooked meal. She has been working hard all week and wants to spend some quality time with him. As she approaches the door to his apartment, she hears strange noises coming from inside. Her heart is racing as she slowly opens the door and walks in.
What she sees makes her blood boil.
Matt is sitting on the couch with another woman bouncing on his lap, their clothes strewn across the floor.
Elena's eyes widen in shock and anger. She can't believe what she is seeing.
A sweat-soaked Matt abruptly looks up and sees Elena standing there. His face pales to a ghostly white.
"Elena, it's not what it looks like," he stammers, practically throwing the woman on the floor as he struggles to get to his feet.
Elena doesn't want to hear his excuses. She turns around and walks out of the apartment, slamming the door behind her. She knows their relationship is over.
Good riddance.
"You excited to start this new adventure?" Caroline asks snapping Elena out of her musings as she pulls into a convenience store to fill the gas tank.
Elena nods. "Terrified. But I'm ready for a change. A part of me thinks that I shouldn't have run away but the other part of me thinks that this was the push I needed to seize the opportunity and make my dream come true.
"It's going to work out. And since I helped you pack up your whole life. You better not tell me I did that for nothing." Caroline winks at her.
"Because the fallout from that would be far worse than an abject business failure," Elena counters with a roll of her eyes.
"You know you always have my support."
"I know and thank you," Elena smiles at her. "Do you want anything inside?" she asks as she steps out of the car.
"I'll come with you."
They head toward the store entrance behind a man and a little girl who is unaware that she dropped her stuffed gorilla.
Elena picks it up and calls aloud. "Excuse me, I think you lost this." She stoops down in front of the child and hands her the stuffed animal.
"See, no bruises or anything." She smiles as she hands the stuffed animal to the little girl.
"Thank you for saving Joe," Damon says gratefully, "She sleeps with him every night!" He smiles at her sincerely before walking away with Nadia.
"So cute," Elena sighs as she watches them go inside.
"He was." Caroline grins, arching a perfectly-shaped eyebrow.
"I was talking about the little girl," Elena retorts as she pulls open the door, allowing Caroline to pass before going inside.
As they're waiting to pay for their drinks, Elena catches a glimpse of the man as he pulls out of the parking lot.
It's a warm fall afternoon when Damon drives into Mystic Falls. He has been away for months. Surprisingly, it feels good to see the familiar sights and sounds of his childhood after being gone for several months. As he drives down Main Street, he passes the old movie theater where he had his first date, the diner where he used to hang out with his friends, and the park where he played baseball as a kid.
Damon turns onto his street and sees his childhood home growing larger as he gets closer. The Salvatore House is a Tudor-style mansion with a red-brick exterior and a white trim. The interior of the house has a grand staircase, a fireplace, a library, a courtyard, and a garden.
Damon has many memories both good and bad.
He parks his car and stares for a few moments before getting out and walking around to Nadia's side. "This is home now, sweet girl," he tells her as he helps her out of the car.
As they walk up to the front door, he tells Nadia to ring the doorbell.
The door swings open and Stefan appears in the doorway. For a moment, he just stares in disbelief before shaking himself out of it.
"Damon? What are you doing here?" Stefan exclaims as he steps aside to let them in.
"Nadia, this is Uncle Stefan," Damon introduces her.
"I met you when you were a baby. You're a big girl already," Stefan remarks, smiling at his niece.
"I'm going to put a movie on for her...There's something I need to talk to you about."
"I'll be in the kitchen," Stefan nods and walks away.
Once Damon has Nadia settled, he pours himself two fingers of bourbon and goes in search of Stefan.
"What are you cooking?" Damon asks as he enters the room.
"Pasta Carbonara," he replies and turns the stove down. "What is it that you want?" Stefan turns to face him.
"Living in my apartment isn't going to work for me and Nadia. There's only one bedroom, and there's no yard for her to play."
"Are you going to move out?"
"Yes, the lease is coming due, I'm not going to renew it." Damon shrugs.
"And then where will you go?" Stefan counters.
Damon pauses for a long, deliberate moment. "The house is plenty big enough."
"Not happening," Stefan says flatly. "I like living alone."
"Get real, Stefan. This place is huge. What do you have to lose by letting us stay with you? There is more than enough room for all of us."
"Do you know what life is like for single guys with kids? You miss out on all the hot women because none of them wants to play second fiddle to a child. Even if by some miracle, you manage to snag a hot woman, it won't last. No spontaneous weekends in Richmond or Virginia Beach, no wild sex, no sleeping late, ever."
"Really Stefan? You don't do that stuff now," Damon points out.
"The point is, that's my choice. But there's no choice when there's a kid involved. While your friends are knocking back a beer and watching a game, you're at the doctor's office, a school function, or whatever," Stefan rebukes him.
"It's not forever."
"Maybe not, but " Stefan shakes his head, "Just the rest of my youth," he mocks, dragging out the words.
"How are you defining your youth?" Damon air quotes the words, "Stefan? Because from where I'm sitting, your youth jumped the shark a couple of years back."
Stefan stays motionless except for the middle finger that shoots up. "I have plans," he grits out. "And none of them include children."
"Neither did mine...I need your help." Damon lets out a taut sigh and throws back what's left of his bourbon.
A few muttered curses emerge from Stefan's mouth.
"Okay. But I have conditions. We'll try it out but if it's not working for me, you'll have to move. And I want rent money."
"Stefan, I own part of this house, too. You can't kick me out but I am more than willing to help pay expenses."
"Both of us living under the same roof for the first time in years. That's not a disaster waiting to happen," Stefan scoffs sarcastically.
Damon is about to say something when a soft shuffling sound commands his attention. Nadia comes to the kitchen doorway with a bewildered expression.
"What's the matter?" Damon asks gently as he picks her up. "Are you hungry?" The round weight of her head on his shoulder, and the soft mass of her dark curls fill him with unnerving tenderness.
He is all she has.
Just start by loving her...
That's the easy part. It's the rest that Damon is worried about.
The leaves crunch under Elena's feet as she and Caroline stroll down Main Street.
They stop in front of Elena's new bookstore, Tale Spinners, and unlock the door. A sharp gust of wind lifts Elena's hair from her neck, causing a shiver to race down her back.
Elena hurries inside the warm building, attempting to leave behind the chilly October air. She relocks the door and makes her way inside with Caroline behind her.
"I love the brick siding so that can stay as is. What do you think about candy apple red bookshelves or do you think just standard ones?"
"I think a cherry wood color would be wonderful. We'll have to paint them," Caroline runs her fingers along the white shelves.
"Great idea," Elena retorts excitedly as she walks through the arch that leads to another smaller room. "This will be the children's area. I'm going to get a TV for them to watch movies and set up the fairy house. I'm most excited to decorate it. I thought we could put up movie posters of The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and things like that. Or cartoon character images? I have also considered wildflowers for the theme. You know I love them so much."
"I do know that and I think all of those ideas are outstanding, Elena. I'm really happy you asked me to come along. I like this little town."
"I'm so grateful, Caroline," Elena hugs her.
"What might be nice, too, is a speaker system to play soft music. And a coffee area. It'll be so great."
"That's brilliant, Care. We could put the coffee area upstairs," Elena remarks and heads toward the spiral staircase that leads to the next level.
"This will be perfect," Caroline agrees.
"We have a lot of work to do so we better get busy!" Elena laughs and rolls up her sleeves.
After indulging in Stefan's homemade pasta, Damon drew a bath for Nadia. As soon as she slips into her pajamas, she steps out of the bathroom.
"Come on, I'll tuck you in," he takes her hand and leads her into a room across the hall from his own. "You need to sleep. We've got a lot of busy days ahead of us. Tomorrow we'll have to go to school and I need to get back to work."
Stefan follows as Damon carries Nadia to her room. Settling her on the mattress, Damon pulls the covers up and sits on the edge of the bed.
Looking into her haunting dark eyes, the force of his own emotions surprises him. She's already so tightly wrapped around his heart. He can't give her back the life she had with her Mother, but he will love and take care of her and try to give her some semblance of normalcy.
"You want me to tell you a bedtime story?"
Nadia nods, her gaze flicking briefly to Stefan who's leaning against the door frame.
"Once upon a time," Damon starts, "there was an old father pig who had three little pigs and not enough food to feed them. So, when they were old enough, he sent them out into the world to seek their fortunes. The first little pig was very lazy. He didn't want to work at all and he built his house out of straw," he says animatedly. "The second little pig worked a little bit harder but he was somewhat lazy too and he built his house out of sticks."
"Then, they sang and danced and played together the rest of the day," Stefan interrupts from his perch in the doorway.
Damon smiles faintly. "The third little pig worked hard all day and built his house with bricks…"
The words die on his lips when Damon notices that she's sleeping. His heart swells as he gazes at her innocent face. He can't help but think about how much he loves this little person and how much he wants to protect her from the world.
Damon leans forward and kisses Nadia's forehead, whispering "I love you" before quietly leaving the room.
Apologies. I was going to update but I fell down the stairs Sunday and just didn't get to it. I'm fine, just sore.
Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing. Of course, now, I'm stuck waiting for inspiration again for the next story. LOL. Like most nurses, I am as "Type A" as they come so I don't have much patience. It's frustrating when I can't come up with an idea and yet the frustration is counterproductive.
Chapter title: I Will Walk With You by John Fogerty.
Thank you, Eva. Love you.
Have a great day. We'll see you soon.