Crimes of the Heart (formerly Second Chances)
by Erin Salvatore
Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries. I'm just borrowing. Only the story belongs to me.
Note: Yeah, I got the idea for a rewrite of a fic I wrote a long time ago. It's a Delena story, of course, and the summary of the plot is this: Elena Gilbert leaves Mystic Falls because she needs time to breathe. She entrusts her secret to Stefan Salvatore, Damon's brother. When she returns 15 years later, will things be different, or will they stay the same?
HERE WE GO!
CHAPTER 1
Elena Gilbert let out a heavy sigh as she stared out the window at the rain. Just hours earlier, she had made the difficult decision to leave Mystic Falls. She hated to do so, because it meant leaving everyone behind, including her boyfriend, Damon Salvatore, behind. It wasn't that she didn't love him, she did, but she felt like she was suffocating and wanted to leave for a while so that she could breathe.
"Are you sure you want to do this, Elena?"
The concerned voice belonging to Damon's brother, Stefan, brought her out of her reverie. He had reluctantly agreed to take her to the bus depot. He couldn't understand why she was leaving, since he thought things between her and Damon were going well.
"Stefan, I don't want you to lecture me," she said. "I just...need to get out of town for a while."
"And not tell Damon? He's not going to be happy when he finds out you left. You know how much he loves you."
"I do, and believe me, leaving him is tearing me up inside," said Elena. "Believe me, this has nothing to do with him. I didn't tell him I was leaving because I didn't want him to beg me to stay." She sighed and faced forward. "I need to do this, Stefan, and I need you to keep this between us."
"You want me to keep this from my brother?" said Stefan. "Elena, I've never kept secrets from Damon and this is a big secret you want me to keep from him."
"I know this is a lot for me to ask of you, but you're my friend and there's no else I'd entrust this to."
Stefan tried to protest, but knew he was fighting a losing battle. Elena was stubborn, just as stubborn as Damon, and once either of them set their mind on something, there was no reasoning with them. There were times where Stefan could've sworn Elena was the female version of Damon, especially personality wise.
"All right," he said. "I'll keep this between us. But, it's not going to be easy to keep Damon from finding out the truth."
"I have faith in you, Stefan. And I also realize I'm probably going to get you in trouble with Rebekah, since it's your anniversary and she was counting on you to have something special planned for the two of you."
Rebekah Mikaelson was Stefan's girlfriend, whom he had been dating for three years. He made a mental note to buy some roses when he got back to town, as well as have a HUGE apology for standing her up.
After a while, they arrived at the bus depot. Elena undid her seat belt and was about to get out of the car when Stefan grabbed her hand, making her look him in the eye.
"Tell me the truth, Elena, why are you leaving?"
Elena saw the gleam in his green eyes and realized that he wasn't going to let her leave until he knew the real reason why. She briefly turned away and sighed, gathering up the courage before turning to face him again.
"I'm pregnant, Stefan."
"Does Damon know?"
Elena shook her head. "No, I didn't tell him. And before you ask, yes, I'm keeping the baby. And yes, I do realize I'm hurting Damon by depriving him of knowing he's going to be a father, but I've made up my mind."
Stefan let go of her hand. "Just promise me one thing before you go."
"And what's that?"
"Keep me informed," said Stefan. "This is my niece or nephew we're talking about here and I would appreciate if you sent me updates. I won't tell Damon, but…"
Elena kissed his cheek. "I will, I promise."
That being said, she grabbed her suitcase and umbrella, getting out of the car and rushing to get to her bus. Stefan watched her as she left, his heart pounding the whole time. He felt a pang of guilt the instant she was gone. She's asking a hell of a lot from me, especially keeping a secret of this magnitude from Damon. I just hope Elena knows what she's doing.
Sighing, he drove away, the burden of his task already feeling heavy on his shoulders.
Note: And thus begins the new Delena AU/AH. Stay tuned, because I promise plenty of drama ahead.
