A/N: So this is where my new DE fic begins! I decided I'd start with a prologue because idk I wanted to hahah. This fic is AH/AU. It's been highly requested that my next fic would be. I asked you all to give me ideas on what you'd want and the winning one was this one. It was actually a high school love story, but I'm doing it a bit differently (I might try out one of the other ideas after this one if you are still willing to read). This fic will be very different to my last one, but I'm excited!
I don't know how often I will be posting, since I haven't written this one in advance. Hopefully I can catch up and bring you one every week :) Maybe eventually I'll set a day like last time.
Full summary: Five years ago, a life changing event caused Elena Gilbert to flea home, right before her high school graduation. She left everything behind, including her best friend and boyfriend Damon Salvatore. When her friend makes her attend her high school reunion, she hopes to keep Damon where he's been for years now; out of her life. But when a secret she kept from him all those years ago arises, she's forced to keep him around. Will they ever rekindle their flame or will their story end where they left it?
Rated M for smut and language
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or scenes from The Vampire Diaries, though I may use them.
Prologue: Rainbows and Unicorns
Elena flicked the steering wheel to the side as she gave way to a passing car. She wouldn't mind being late. Or not going at all for that matter. Even approaching the border of her old home town made her mind shudder with regret. Other than the one event that changed her life and made her move away in the first place, Mystic Falls screamed rainbows and unicorns.
/ / / / / / / / / / / /
"You want my painting?" He questioned, turning to Elena completely like she had previously.
"What is it?" She asked.
"Rainbows and unicorns." He stated sarcastically.
/ / / / / / / / / / / /
Oh no. Why had she thought that? That's something he used to say all the time. One of his 'things' that she loved. Or used to love. Just thinking of those words made the veins on her forehead throb ridiculously.
As her beaten up 2001, dolphin blue, ford fiesta edged closer to the 'Welcome To Mystic Falls Virginia' sign, she freaked. She pulled over onto the grass patch on the edge of the woods right before the sign and turned the car off.
Why had she come? She had just broken up with Matt – again – and no doubt he was going to be there. She hadn't seen any of her high school friends other than Caroline since she ran away and she really wanted to keep it that way. Excluding Bonnie of course. Was there even one reason why she came? With struggle, she turned the car back on and started to reverse.
"What are you doing?" A voice asked her from the back seat.
"I'm going home, Dyl." She whisper-frowned, glancing at him. She tried not to wake Jeremy in the front seat. He deserved the rest. He had been nice enough to volunteer himself to come with them back to the old house until Elena came back tonight.
"We drove six hours." He groaned, unbuckling and reaching over to tap her on the shoulder. She had to stop now. No way she was driving ahead if he didn't have his seatbelt on. She learnt that mistake all too well when her parents died. "Don't you wanna see all your friends?"
"Not all of them are my friends." She smiled softly, knowing she was referring to one in particular. Even if she was worried, none of it could show on her face. Not in front of him.
"Stop feeling sad and go see your friends." He sighed, moving back into his seat and buckling his seatbelt back up. "And aunt Jenna."
"Dylan." Elena whined, glancing at him one last time. "Fine. But only for Jenna."
/ / / / / / / / / / / /
"Guess. There can't be that many D names." He shook his head.
"Actually, there are over 100 really common boys names that start with D." She corrected him.
"Well maybe my name's not that common." He replied, still not looking at her.
"That makes it harder." She raised a brow. "Fine, I'll guess." She shrugged, blinking in thought. "Um…"
"You said there are heaps of boys names that start with D, and you can't think of one?" He asked, giggling at her. He kept his eyes glued to his painting.
"Dylan?" She asked.
"That's a common name." He rolled his eyes.
"Well it's a nice name."
/ / / / / / / / / / / /
"Go, what are you waiting for?!" He exclaimed.
"Fine, I'll go." She laughed, accelerating out of the grass patch she had parked on and entering Mystic Falls for the first time in five whole years. She knew this wasn't going to end well, but there was no way she was getting out of this one. Besides, she wasn't just going for this dumb reunion. She was going to see Jenna.
As Elena pulled up at her old high school, the regret flooded in again. Now that Dyl wasn't here to convince her to go, she was having a hard time convincing herself. Not one of her old friends had tried messaging her or finding her after she left in senior year – other than Caroline and Bonnie of course. And him...but they weren't friends anymore.
She missed Bonnie so much. She still hadn't seen her since she left. Only texting. Would that make it awkward? Still, that was the least of her worries. Even seeing Matt wouldn't be so bad, as long as she didn't have to be alone with him. She was just scared she'd bump into the one old friend that made her leave in the first place.
She reached for her phone and texted Caroline. She had the guest list. She quickly typed; 'Is HE here?' and clicked send. As she waited patiently for the reply, she figured looking decent wouldn't kill her. She grabbed her makeup bag from the glove box, flicked her mirror down and began to apply some basics. She heard her phone vibrate against the dashboard and rushed to check it. 'He's not coming'
She grinned and tugged the elastic out of her hair, letting her wavy chocolate locks fall.
She looked pretty.
/ / / / / / / / / / / /
"Yeah, but that's not my name." He said, finally looking at her. "You're pretty."
"Thank you." She smiled. She was going to call him handsome, but she decided against it. A six year old can't be handsome, can they?
/ / / / / / / / / / / /
No.
She looked hot.
Calling people pretty was something six year olds did.
After that message from Caroline, her mood lifted from, 'on the verge of depression' to 'I'm ready for these bitches.' She was actually excited to see Bonnie and Caroline again, and show the rest of her graduating year she was doing great. Even if it was a lie. A big fat lie. Truth be told she was doing shit. Not that having Dyl and Jer wasn't amazing, just that she had nothing else going for her. She worked at a little toy store back in Brooklyn. So much for a profession. But the only people who knew that were Bonnie, Caroline and Matt. Oh and Jeremy and Dylan. If she'd never see these people again, she could always bullshit right?
'Whatever,' She finally thought, letting go of all her worries. Or at least most of them. She stepped out of her car and made her way into the old brick building. She hoped no one would notice her heels clicking on the floor. She was already late, the last thing she wanted to do was make an entrance.
As she hoped, the gym was crowded with people and not many noticed her walking in. Thank fuck. As she slowly walked around, she recognised pretty much every face she saw. Although she wanted to go undetected by most, she couldn't help wondering if they remembered her. She was head cheerleader and one of the most popular girls at school. She also didn't look much different, other than her hair not being pin straight as it used to be.
"'Lena!" Bonnie squealed, tapping her on the shoulder.
"Hey, Bon!" She smiled, turning around to hug her friend. It didn't feel like this was the first time seeing Bonnie in person since she left. Probably because they had FaceTimed almost every day since. "You don't know how much I've missed you."
"I doubt more than me." Bonnie giggled, squeezing her. "You look so good."
"Really? Because I don't feel so good." Elena laughed, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.
"Why? I'm sure everyone here remembers you." Bonnie offered, turning around to pour a drink.
"That's what I'm afraid of." She sighed as Bonnie handed her a glass of punch.
"Don't worry, just say hi. You don't need to tell them your life story." Bonnie smiled.
"I guess." She shrugged, sculling the punch in one go. She shivered as the alcohol seared her throat. She wasn't the biggest drinker, but if she was going to get through the night, she needed a couple more of those.
"Easy." Bonnie chuckled. "I'm gonna get the DJ to change the music because this sucks."
"Okay." Elena pursed her lips as she poured herself another punch.
"Elena Gilbert?" A guy asked from behind her.
"Congratulations, you've learnt the basics of my na—Stefan?"
"In the flesh." He laughed, sipping his beer. "I did not expect to see you here."
"Caroline dragged me along." She nodded.
"Classic Caroline." He alliterated, raising his brows. "You know everyone was so confused when you left. Especially D—"
"What's your name?" She turned to him, smiling widely.
"Why?" He pursed his lips, not looking at her.
"Well, your name is probably a D name because of where you are sitting, and I read everyone else's name, but I can't see yours because it's on the front of your table. So what's your name?" She asked again, putting her paintbrush down and sitting on the side of her chair to look at him fully.
"Guess." He smiled, still not looking at her as he continued to paint.
"Dave. Yeah I know." She smiled falsely, cutting him off. There was no 'Dave' in their year, and she'd known Stefan since they were toddlers. She pretended she didn't see his confused look and just smiled. The name he was about to say was not one she wanted to hear tonight. Though now she already felt queasy. She was talking to the closest person to him. Not that they were ever really close, but still.
"Hey, why did you lea—"
"I need to pee." She cut him off again, pushing passed him. She felt kind of bad. He meant well, but this was definitely not a conversation she wanted to have, especially with him.
Her cheap five dollar Walmart stilettos clicked heavily on the wooden floors and as she reached the bathroom, they became louder against the tiles. She leaned over one of the sinks and quickly turned it's faucet. She wanted so badly to spray her face with the cool flowing liquid, but she had made the mistake of applying mascara. That definitely wouldn't end well. She breathed heavily and turned the flowing water back off.
Despite her poor attempt to escape Stefan, she did need to pee. She chose the cubicle closest to the door. She never understood why people would walk in and pick the last or middle cubicle. What's wrong with the first one? She turned the half unscrewed lock on the white wooden door. As she pulled her black skinny jeans down her hips, she read the graffiti on the door. One thing she always did in cubicles. Why not? The people put it there in the first place, might as well be read. Her eyes scanned the door from top to bottom. Some of them were funny. Some were just names and signatures.
When she finished up, she was about to unlock the cubicle and wash her hands when she noticed a heart drawn in sky blue sharpie on the wall next to her. Her favourite colour.
/ / / / / / / / / / / /
"Me too." She giggled. After a few moments of silence, Elena decided to finish her painting. What else was she supposed to do? She grabbed her paintbrush and dipped it in the skin coloured one. She wanted to paint a person today. She painted a slightly nicer body than a stick figure and then went straight onto the clothes. She turned to him and copied his clothes. A blue t-shirt that matched his eyes, and some dark blue jeans. She liked that he wore blue. It was her favourite colour — at least it was now.
/ / / / / / / / / / / /
Inside the outlined heart read 'D + E forever' in the same blue sharpie. All of a sudden she felt hot. Sweaty. Uncomfortable. Regretful. Hurt. Longing. Anger. She completely forgot they wrote that in the girl's bathroom in junior year. What bothered her most was the 'forever' bit. Mostly because he didn't mean it, but also because she spent forever crying over it. Before she could convince herself to go home right now and never come back to this god forsaken town, she unlocked the door and sprinted out of the bathroom. She could do this. She could survive one night. She needed to prove to herself she was strong enough not to choose the easy way out and run. She was a different person now. For better or worse. It would just take will power and something she never had, but hoped she could discover tonight; confidence.
After a lot of awkward 'hello's and dodging the question of why she left, she really wanted to go. She still hadn't seen Caroline though. She decided she'd hang with her and Bonnie for a bit and then go. High school reunions were definitely not her thing. She wouldn't be going to the ten year one that's for sure.
She scanned the room for her blonde friend. Once she found her talking to someone across the room, she decided she'd wait until she was free by the food bar.
She looked around to make sure no one was watching her and began to eat her heart out. As she stuffed mini ham and cheese sandwiches into her mouth, a heavy hand rested on her shoulder.
"Hey, slow down there." A husky voice cooed against her hair.
"What?" She swallowed, licking her lips. "Are you the sandwich police?" She asked, turning towards the stranger.
"Elena?" His voice went from flirty and velvety to rough and unwelcoming. His face went blank as he removed his hand from her shoulder. The one person she hoped she'd never have to see again, merely inches away. His hand was just resting on her skin. She didn't know how she didn't recognise his voice. Especially when she had played it over and over in her head when she left.
She resented him for what he did all those years ago. Ruining their friendship for something ridiculous. As much as she always wanted to hate him, she couldn't. They had too much history. And yet as much as she resented him, for some reason, she wanted him to put his hand back on her shoulder. She missed his warmth, and being without it for five years made her yearn for it once she got a taste.
She analysed his face. It hadn't changed much. He was still just as gorgeous. His baby blue eyes were just as piercing as they were years ago and his jaw was sharper than ever. She reminisced how she used to kiss down the planes of his cheeks. Now they were coated in dark stubble and it made him seem rough and jagged. Like he purposely let it grow to show her there was a wall between them. He seemed awfully standoffish towards her, which was strange since she was the one who was hurt.
"Um...Do I know you?" She managed to get out. 'Do I know you?' She thought. 'What is wrong with me?' She didn't need to impress him or anything, but that was the worst way to greet him. Worst. If she did end up interacting with him, like she was now, she wanted to show him she was doing well, even if she wasn't. Her dumb answer already put her in the 'failed at life' pile.
"Do you know me?" He scoffed, his icy blue eyes growing colder. He took a step back distancing himself from her, as if he didn't want to see her either. "Wow, not like we were best friends or anything."
"I'm sorry." She shook her head, tapping her heel against the ground. "I have to go." She blurted, speed walking to Caroline, not daring to turn around or look at him. She had to make sure to keep her distance.
"Hey, Elena is this good or what?" Caroline grinned as Elena stopped in front of her.
"No Care, it's horrible. You told me he wasn't coming." She frowned, crossing her arms tightly as the all too familiar tears seared her bottom lids.
"Stefan told me he wasn't." Caroline knitted her brows.
"Well he's here and he hates me."
"You hate him too though."
"Yeah," She started, knowing she was lying through her teeth. Truth was, she never got over him. She never hated him no matter how hard she tried to. Maybe it was because she had a living reminder of him always around. Either way, she could never hate him. "but I have every right to."
"Whatever, just avoid him." Caroline shrugged. "Speaking of avoiding, Matt is coming your way."
"Cover for me?" She begged.
"I got you." Care winked. She stood in Matt's way and began to bombard him with pointless questions. Elena kept her eyes glued to Caroline and Matt as she ran the opposite way, her recklessness causing her to fall into a solid chest. Within a few seconds a warm set of hands were stuck on her waist. She threw her arms around the man's neck on impulse and looked up at him.
"Shit." She jumped, trying to get out of his grasp. His hands were gripping her hips tightly and she couldn't escape without making a huge scene.
"Now do you remember me?" He raised a brow. She flushed with heat as his words hit her freezing cheeks, yet still she couldn't answer him. She didn't realise, but his hands on her hips and hers around his neck made them look like they were dancing amongst the other couples. However, they weren't a couple. They never would be again. "Oh come on Elena, you can't even speak to me?"
"What's there to say?" She asked, rolling her eyes. This is exactly what she wanted to avoid.
"Hi Damon, sorry I left and didn't talk to you for five years." He put on his best Elena voice. She clenched her jaw as he spoke his own name, simultaneously trying not to slap him and laugh at him. She hadn't heard his name aloud since she left and the sound of it hit her hard.
"There's nothing to apologise for." She shrugged as if it didn't mean anything to her. Again she was lying, but at least not to herself. His eyes had softened since the last time they talked less than five minutes ago. They were the warm shade of blue she missed so much. His wall was coming down, but hers wasn't. Even if she wanted to knock it over herself, she couldn't. She wouldn't for him, ever again.
"Seriously, where have you been, E?"
/ / / / / / / / / / / /
"Thanks." He smirked. "So your name is an E name?"
"Yeah, it's E—"
"Wait, let me guess now." He interrupted. "Emily?"
"No."
"Emma?" He guessed.
"No, not Emma." She laughed.
"Edith?"
"Ew, no. That's an ugly name." She cringed, shaking her head almost immediately.
"It's too hard. I'll call you E."
/ / / / / / / / / / / /
"Don't call me that." She snapped, clenching her fists against the back of his neck.
"Okay," He sighed. He had called her 'E' since they were six years old. "Where have you been, Elena?"
"New York." She finally answered something honestly. What was he going to do, follow her home? Everything he had was here, as if he'd leave everything behind. She internally laughed at that. That's exactly what she did.
"You hate big cities. Everyone's fake."
"Turns out everyone's fake here, so the big city couldn't be any worse right?" She insulted him slyly.
"What did I do?" He asked. He seemed genuine but then again, she knew not to trust him.
"What?" She shot back dryly.
"You obviously left because of me, because you returned everyone else's calls who tried to get in touch with you. So, what did I do?" He asked again.
"Nothing." She deadpanned.
"Don't bullshit me, E." He scoffed, disobeying her request.
"What do you want me to say, Damon?" She huffed as she finally said his name. Five years without uttering those syllables and she finally did it. Even though she was so infuriated right now, she couldn't help but admire about how beautifully his name rolled off her tongue. It was like only she was meant to speak it. It was hers. No. She couldn't think like that. "That you hurt me? That I left because of you? That I didn't want to see you? You already know that."
"No, Elena I don't. You haven't spoken to me since my birthday party over five years ago. It hasn't exactly been rainbows and unicorns. I don't know what I did to hurt you. To make you move away and never talk to me — you're boyfriend and you're best friend for twelve years — again. I have no fucking clue. What I do know, is I missed you more than anything. So please just spell it out for me."
"I can't spell it out for you, Damon! No one can. Just leave me alone, I survived long enough without you. I don't need you anymore." She grunted, ignoring everything he said about missing her and pushing away from him as tears seared her bottom lids again. She didn't care if she was making a scene anymore. Fuck them all anyway.
As she sprinted out of the gym, she heard her friends call for her. She needed out. Now. And she never needed back in. But that didn't mean deep deep down she didn't want it. Or him.
Yay! Hope you enjoyed the Prologue! Next chap will be a bit longer and will have longer flashbacks and stuff. I'm really excited for this! Please leave me a review! It helps me improve and it doesn't take long at all! Thank you all xxx
Also wanna quickly thank iwantyoudamon for being so supportive of this fic! I really appreciate it :)
See you soon ;) Jasmine