Elena and Damon were walking back home. They had spent the rest of the day at The Grill and Elena had beaten Damon in a darts game. A small part of him wished she could stay this way. She was fun, she liked hanging out with him and she didn’t talk about Stefan that much. But he fell in love with the real Elena. The one that saved his life and that stayed with him while he was sick from Tyler’s attack. Elena clung on his arm and shoved with her feet. “My legs hurt” she moaned. She looked up at Damon, with a puppy stare in her eyes. “Don’t look at me like that” Damon said teasing. “God gave you feet, use them” Elena curled her nose. “You sound like my dad” she said grumpy. “Don’t be ridiculous” Damon said. “I’m much older than your father. I could be your great great great great great grandfather”
“Then you’d be one with a very good anti-wrinkle cream” Elena giggled. “I wonder if your muscles are in the same excellent shape as when you were twenty. Or is everything starting to creak, eh, grandpa?”
Damon pursed his lips. “Grandpa. Come on, get up, I’ll carry you” he said. He knew Elena only had provoked him so she wouldn’t have to walk anymore… and he gladly gave in. Elena walked behind him and jumped on his back. “Ah, much better” Elena said. “C’mon, horsy, homewards”
Damon raised his eyebrows. He’d have to do a lot of compelling once the real Elena was back. “Are you good?” he asked his passenger. “Yep” Elena confirmed and she held Damon’s collar really tight as if she was holding Reins. “Go!” she said and Damon raced away.
But Damon raced too fast. When they arrived at the Gilbert house he couldn’t brake and bumped into the wall. Elena fell off his shoulders, on the ground.
“Oh my God, are you hurt?” Damon asked worried. He ducked and helped Elena stand up. She had a small cut in her head. “I’m so sorry” Damon said soft. He carefully touched Elena’s forehead. Elena shivered. Not just because it hurt…
He made a step forward and placed his lips on her forehead, tasting the blood. He felt Elena’s warm breath breezing on his throat. He pulled away, and caressed her cheek. His eyes glided over her eyes, her nose, to her lips. This was wrong, he was taking advantage of the circumstances. And though he knew it was a lame excuse, he had to, and so he gently pressed his lips on hers.
Ten seconds, that felt like hours and yet way too short, they were locked onto each other. Ten second wherein neither of them dared to breath.
It was Damon who broke the silence. “You should get inside” he said softly. Elena nodded numbed and inserted her house key in the lock. She turned it and opened the door. She entered the house and as she walked further she heard a familiar voice. A voice Damon recognized as well. His face stiffened and fear came over him. Fear to lose Elena.
“Elena”
Elena gasped and stared in front of her. She knew he’d come back.
“Stefan!” she exclaimed. She ran to him and threw her arms around his neck, kissing him firmly on the mouth.
Damon felt like everything around him faded and his heart shattered in a zillion pieces. If the moon had crashed down on him it couldn’t have hurt more. He couldn’t watch this any longer. He turned around and slammed the door. He shot one last look inside where he could see his brother and the girl he loved clinging onto each other as if they would disappear into the nothing if they ever let go.