Closer than Most 2
Damon,
I’m so sorry I’m doing this to you, but I have to. Klaus is dead and the threat to me and Mystic Falls is done. Then I realized, I’m only 18 and I’m in love with a vampire. I want so much in life, Damon. I want to grow old and have children. No vampire can give that to me. I love you, I do. But the baggage from the past year and a half is wearing me down. I’m not me anymore and I miss that person. That is why I need to leave. I need to leave Mystic Falls and everything supernatural that is in it.
I know I’m breaking your heart, and it’s breaking mine to leave, but I have to. I have to give myself a chance at a normal life and I can’t live one with what I’ve gone through. I asked Stefan to take it all away. I know you would say that was being a quitter and taking the easy way out, but I can’t live like this anymore. I’ve been so strong through everything and now I just want to be weak for once.
He’s taking everything away. Everything from the past year and a half. I’m so sorry. I love you. I hope one day you can forgive me.
Love,
Elena
He read the letter over and over again. His mind flashed back to the moment Stefan walked into the boarding house telling him that Elena was gone. That she’d come to him desperate to live a normal life. She knew he’d do it for her. She knew Damon never would. He was so angry at first. He couldn’t believe after all they’d been through that she’d just leave him like that.
She took the easy way out. Some days he was so angry at her for it, but it gave him time to search the world to figure out how he could be the one thing she wanted. He knew it was crazy, but he always thought that if he figured it out, then she’d come back to him.
And she did. Some how she broke through the compulsion that should’ve been impossible to break, but she did. Just like it was impossible for vampires to become human. But he did. He did it for her.
He threw himself into searching for a witch that would be able to figure out a spell. There had to be something. He knew the witches were all about “preserving the balance of nature” but a vampire was unnatural! Being a human wasn’t. So with that in mind he set out across the east coast searching. He’d found Lucy Bennett after a year of searching. She didn’t want to be found and when he’d finally decided to give up, she materialized in front of him one day. She knew he’d been looking for her. She already knew what he wanted, but she avoided him until she knew how to give it to him. Of course, it didn’t come without stipulations.
One he had easily accomplished, Klaus was dead. The other was fairly simple. She wanted the Bennett line released from their debt to the vampires. It seemed all to easy for him, but he did it and got what he wanted.
His first few days as a human again were unreal. The emotions hit him so hard he almost couldn’t function. He thought they’d kill him right then and there, but slowly he learned how to cope, how to deal with it all. After he learned how to deal, then came his love for the one girl who inspired him to change, to take a chance and really go for what he wanted in life. His heart swelled when he thought about her, but not soon after he would remember that she chose to leave him. For the first time he felt like he experienced true and real heart break. For the first time in over 150 years, he cried. He really cried, not just a tear, a full on, frame-shaking cry. He cried so hard it hurt, it physically hurt him. His knees had buckled under his weight, sending him straight to the floor. He had to desperately search for something to hold onto while the sobs shook his whole body and soul. It had been the single most painful thing he’d ever experienced. He tried to push the pain away, to shut it off, but it was gone. He had to feel every moment of it.
The shrill ring of his phone pulled him out of his walk down memory lane. He glanced at the screen quickly before answering.
“Good morning, darling,” he said with a smirk.
“How soon can you get over here?” Ric asked, his voice sounded strained.
“Be there in ten,” he said as he snapped the phone shut. He figured Ric had seen Elena and was panicking about how she ever managed to come back. He had been musing about since he saw her the day before. He still had no answers.
Eleven minutes later, he was walking into the Gilbert-Saltzman house. He walked straight into the kitchen where Ric was nursing a cup of coffee.
“Do you have any idea who showed up on my porch yesterday claiming she was moving back?” Ric said as Damon moved past him to fill his own mug of coffee. Since becoming human, he learned that he really couldn’t drink so early in the mornings or he’d be useless the rest of the day. He took a sip of the glorious liquid before turning to face Ric.
“A little doe-eyed beauty, I suspect,” Damon smirked as he leant back against the counter.
“I thought she was supposed to be gone forever, never coming back. How did she come back?” Alaric asked, pacing with a glass of Bourbon in his hand, then he froze, “Wait, how did you know she’s back?”
“I ran into her at the Grill. Imagine my surprise,” he mused sarcastically, “Where is she anyway?”
“She’s still sleeping, we were all up pretty late last night,” Ric said, before taking another swig of his coffee, “Do you think she remembers?”.
“No, I don’t think so,” he mumbled trying to figure out how she’d gotten back.
“Do you think Stefan tried to remove the compulsion?” Ric asked, “Maybe he wanted her to remember him again.”
“Remember who again?” A tired voice asked from the doorway. Damon’s heart lurched at the sight of her. She was still wearing her pajamas, which only consisted of a small, tight-fitting tank top, and short shorts. God, he missed those legs.
“We were just talking about wedding plans,” Ric covered quickly, “Elena, this is my best man, Damon. Damon, this is my niece, Elena. She’s also Meredith’s maid of honor.” He knew he had to keep up the charade in case Elena really didn’t remember.
Damon held out his hand to her, but she just looked at it suspiciously.
“Ah yes, we met yesterday,” she said, carefully placing her hand in his. He smirked at her and her heart went wild as he pulled her hand up and placed a gentle kiss on her knuckles.
“It’s my pleasure,” his smirk only increased when she tried to rip her slightly shaky hand from his grip.
“I still think you look like an ass,” she muttered as she finally pulled her hand from his. His proximity was doing terrible things to her heart and she didn’t like it one bit. She hated emotions. They were reserved for one person, a person that didn’t exist. If the only person she could truly love was a figment of her imagination, why give anyone else a chance?
Ric’s phone rang and he excused himself to take the call, leaving Damon and Elena alone.
“So, Miss Elena, what’s your story?” He asked leaning back against the counter across from her. She turned after she filled her mug and mimicked his stance.
“My story is pretty lame. I grew up here then moved to New York durning my senior year. After that I attended NYU and graduated with a degree in creative writing,” she explained.
“Why’d you move in the middle of your senior year?” Damon asked, hoping to shed some light on why she was back now.
“I don’t know,” she shrugged, “I guess I just needed a change after my parents and my aunt passed away.”
She pursed her lips and he couldn’t get the feel of them against his out of his mind. His heart rate was picking up just being so close to her. All he wanted was her in his arms and he never wanted to let go. He wanted to feel her pressed against him and the perfection of how they fit together. Like she was made for him.
He had to get away from her before he did something crazy like close the small distance between them and rip all her clothes off.
“Well, Elena, it was nice seeing you again, but I have places to be,” he pushed off the counter and moved so he stood only a few inches from her. A satisfied smirk formed on his lips when he heart her small gasp, “I’ll see you around.”
She mumbled a goodbye and watched him leave in a daze. Her heart was having a hard time recovering from his presence. Maybe because the man in her dreams took on a new characteristic, his eyes were a stunning blue as they gazed into hers and he told her he loved her. Her heart reacted in her dream the same way her’s did when Damon stood so close to her.
She tried to push him from her mind for the rest of the morning as she got ready. She couldn’t have him getting under her skin and into her brain. She didn’t like the effect he had on her. She didn’t like it one bit.
She successfully pushed him from her thoughts all morning. She entered the town square to enjoy the weather and pick up a few incidentals that she’d forgotten when she moved. She was in her own world until she spotted a familiar blonde sitting at a table in front of the Grill. Her eyes locked with the blue-eyed man sitting across from her friend.
Dammit. Now she was thinking about him again and her palms were already getting sweaty. The blonde followed his gaze until her eyes fell upon Elena. The squeal of delight she let out was deafening, even from across the street. The blonde came bouncing across the street before wrapping her arms around her.
“Elena!” She squealed, “I can’t believe you are back!”
“Hey Caroline,” Elena said as she patted her friend on the back, “I missed you too.”
Elena glanced at the man Caroline had been sitting with over her shoulder, but to her disappointment, he was gone. She shook her head slightly. She shouldn’t be disappointed, she should be happy.
Caroline dragged her across the street and back to her table. Elena sat in the same seat that Damon had occupied only moments ago.
“Was that Damon you were here with?” Elena asked, hating how curious she sounded.
“Ya, we’re uh...,” Caroline trailed off searching for a good word to describe them, “Friends, I guess.”
“Friends or friends,” Elena raised her eye brows.
“Regular friends, barely,” Caroline said quickly, not wanting to give the wrong impression, besides she almost dry heaved thinking about a time when they were friends. “He’s like totally in love with y-” her eyes widened a little before she stopped herself, “With someone else.” She amended quickly.
“Oh,” Elena dropped her eyes and cringed at how disappointed she sounded. It would be better that way. If he loved someone else then she had no reason to react so strongly to his presence.
“So tell me about college!” Caroline exclaimed, she missed her best friend. Even though she knew Elena left with good reason, it didn’t stop her from missing her best friend.
“College was good,” Elena said, “I’m glad it’s over though.”
“Any boys?” Caroline’s smile grew as she wiggled her eyebrows.
“No,” Elena laughed. In that moment she wondered how she ever lost touch with Caroline and with Bonnie for that matter. She never realized how much she needed them. “I’ve sworn off serious relationships.”
“Really?” Caroline asked disbelieving her.
“Well, sort of,” Elena said, dropping her eyes to her nervous hands in her lap. “Can I tell you something?”
“Anything,” Caroline said in a gentle tone.
“Promise you won’t say anything to anyone and that you won’t laugh,” Elena said quickly.
“I promise, what’s up?” Caroline asked.
“I just felt like my heart doesn’t want anyone because it already is spoken for,” Elena said quietly.
“Well what does your heart want?” Caroline asked.
“See I don’t know!” Elena exclaimed dropping her head, “I feel like ever since I left Mystic Falls I haven’t been the same. I’ve been having dreams.”
“What kind of dreams?” Caroline asked, scooting her chair closer to the table and leaning in.
“It’s the same dream. I can’t see anything, but I’m in my room and there is a man there who is telling me that he loves me, he has more to say, but the dream always ends there,” Elena explained, “And I can feel the love rolling off of him and I can feel it swell inside me as well. It’s crazy, but in my dreams, I’m in love with him too.”
“It’s not crazy,” Caroline said gently.
“It’s so silly, but I don’t want anyone else because I only want that person in my dreams,” Elena said sadly.
“Well maybe you’ll find him some day,” Caroline said softly with a small smile. They talked for almost two hours, catching up, and laughing. It felt so good to be back with her best friend. She missed her so badly and she wondered why she would ever leave her best friends behind.
Once she and Caroline said their goodbye’s she headed off to the small market to get what she’d originally set out for earlier that day. She scanned the isles of the market, searching for her specific shampoo when out of nowhere she ran straight into a strong body. Her basket flew out of her hands and she fell straight to the ground.
“Wow, I’m so sorry,” came the voice that she assumed belonged to the body.
She looked up at the person who was now squatting in front of her picking up some of items she dropped. He was handsome, that was for sure. He had sandy-blonde hair, green eyes, and a soft smile. Yet there was something about him that didn’t sit right with her. Her heart started beating a little harder with his close proximity, but not like it was with Damon. She felt scared.
She jumped up and started gathering the rest of her items and fixed her clothes back into place.
“Thank you,” she said to him quickly, avoiding his gaze.
“Are you new to town?” He asked her with the same smile, but it was unnerving to her.
“Yes,” she said quietly, “I just moved back yesterday.”
His green eyes danced as he shamelessly looked her over. She squirmed under his gaze.
“Well, thanks again for helping me with my stuff,” she said quickly, trying to get away from him.
“Wait,” he said and when she looked up he was right in front of her, throwing her off balance a little. His hand shot out to steady her and she flinched like she’d been burned. Her body reacted so violently to his touch that she almost threw her basket on the ground and made a run for it.
“I never got your name,” he said to her after she was steady on her feet.
“Elena,” she said quickly. She was so desperate to get away from him. She almost felt guilty, she didn’t even know him and she was already passing judgements on him. But she couldn’t control how her body reacted to him. She glanced back up at his green eyes and tried to wear a polite smile.
“Nice to meet you, Elena. I’m Stefan.”