This is taken 4 months after the Sacrifice. Klaus and Elijah are nowhere to be found. Stefan and Elena broke up after Jenna's funeral so he left town with Katherine. Stefan found a cure for Damon's bite. Damon and Elena have gotten closer as friends.

A/N: Could be a one shot. I might continue if I get at least 15 reviews on this. PLEASE REVIEW!

"You know what you need?" I asked, sitting on her bed with Mr. Teddy in my lap.

"A time machine?" Elena asked, taking a seat beside me.

"I was thinking more along the lines of...wait for it...fun." This managed to get a small giggle out of her. She eyed me questioningly.

"What did you have in mind?" Elena asked.

"How about a date?" I suggested nonchalantly.

"A date?" she questioned.

"Yes Elena. A date...as friends of course" I quickly lied.

"Why?"

"Because you could use some romance and fun...plus Alaric's been in the dumps so I'm lacking a wingman to party..." I joked. She nudged my shoulder playfully and grabbed Mr. Teddy from my arms.

"Second choice, every girl's dream!" she said dramatically. My very first instinct was to tell her that she is always my first choice. And if there was a number above one, she'd be it.

"What can I say?" I said, playing along. Elena cocked one of her eyebrows and pursed her lips.

"It's a date!" she said. I got up and put on my leather jacket.

"I'll pick you up at 7?" I asked.

"Yeah...wait. Where are we going?"

"How about Mystic Falls Restaurant, down on eighth street?" I asked.

"Damon...that's the most expensive restaurant around for miles!" she squealed.

"You're worth every penny...and besides, if I have to compel some people to give me cheap prices, by all means..." I joked.

"How romantic..." she retorted, laughing. I rolled my eyes and walked out the door.

I had been on hundreds of dates throughout my lifetime – literally. But never have I ever been this nervous to take a girl out. I must have tried on at least three different outfits before settling for my dark-wash jeans, a black dress shirt and a black jacket. I put on some cologne, ran a brush through my hair. I quickly went downstairs and had a blood bag then went and poured myself a glass of bourbon. I looked at the Grandfather clock beside the fireplace and saw that I'm supposed to pick Elena up in 10 minutes. I decided it's better to be early than late so I hopped in my car and headed over to the Gilbert residence.

"Hey Damon..." Jeremy said, opening the door. He'd taken the death of Jenna just as hard as Elena had, but Jeremy is much better at masking his pain. I stepped inside and Jeremy had already started making his way back to the couch. I closed the door behind me and took a seat beside him.

"Bonnie's here?" I asked, inhaling.

"So is Caroline. They're upstairs helping Elena get ready" Jeremy explained.

"Girls do everything in packs..." Tyler said emerging from the kitchen with a carton of orange juice attached to his mouth.

"Dan-dan-da-daaaaaaaaaa!" Caroline shouted, practically skipping down the stairs with a smile plastered on her face. Bonnie descended the stairs in a quieter way, but smiling just as big as Caroline. Caroline took a seat on Tyler's lap and Bonnie stood at the bottom of the stairs. I turned around just in time to see Elena coming down the stairs. If I had a heart, it would've skipped a beat.

Elena was wearing a royal blue dress that hugged her curves perfectly. It was tight around her torso, but it flowed like a skirt just above her knees. She was wearing silver heels and a silver bracelet. Her long brown hair was curled and tied in a messy bun. It wasn't until Bonnie pinched me that I realized my jaw was open. I quickly walked over to the end of the stairs and Elena smiled sheepishly at me.

"You look...beautiful" was all I could manage. Her cheeks turned a light shade of pink as she said thank you. After Caroline demanded that she get a picture of Jeremy and Elena together, we were out the door. Elena and I didn't speak on the way to the restaurant, but it was a comfortable silence.

Once we arrived to the restaurant, the valet took my car and parked it out back. I extended my arm and Elena looped hers through it. A gaze of awe never left Elena's face as we entered the restaurant and took our table – in the back corner. It was a very cozy, very dim lighted booth. Elena and I sat down and she looked around still taking in the environment.

"Order whatever you'd like, and do me a favour please: don't get something silly like a garden salad just because you're afraid that you'll look greedy..." I said, gesturing towards a menu. She giggled and grabbed the menu from my hands.

"Garden salads are for women who are worried about the first impression... You've seen me at my worst, I'll order something yummy and filling" she said, her eyes browsing the menu for the perfect meal.

"Yeah right. You're a girl. You'll order something light and inexpensive..." I retorted. Elena cocked her head to the side and pursed her lips.

"Are we ready to order?" said our waitress, Cheryl. Elena raised her eyebrow in a victorious and way closed her menu.

"I am. I'll have the Lobster with a garden salad on the side and some iced tea please" Elena said proudly, handing Cheryl her menu.

"I'll have the same" I said. Cheryl nodded and walked away. I turned my gaze to Elena, who was smiling to herself and shaking her head.

"What?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"I get to see what Damon Salvatore is like on a date..." she said.

"I get to see what Elena Gilbert is like naked..." I joked

"Damon!" she blushed.

"I'm kidding!" I said, dodging her small fists. While waiting for our food, we talked. I felt like this was the first time I was meeting Elena. I've seen her angry, I've seen her sad, I've seen her scared and annoyed and flustered and embarrassed and on occasion, I've even seen her happy. And tonight, I got a glimpse of the Elena everyone else loved and adored before her parents died and her life started to crumble.

Elena and I made small talk once the food came, but we continued our conversation once we were finished. People started to make their way onto the dance floor and I contemplated what I was about to do before deciding. I slid out of the booth and Elena's eyes followed me questioningly. I held up a finger to her and walked over to the DJ booth. The DJ nodded at my request and spoke into his microphone.

"This next song is dedicated to Elena Gilbert..." I made my way back to the table and extended my hand out to her.

"Elena Gilbert...would you like to dance?" I asked.

"I would love to" she said, taking my hand. Our hands intertwined as we walked to the dance floor and even over the murmurs and conversations in the crowd, I could hear Elena's heartbeat pick up. I spun her around so she was facing me. I put my hand on her lower back and kept my hold on her right hand. Elena put her hand around my shoulder and around my neck and smiled at me.

"What song did you pick?" she asked me. Just then, music filled the restaurant. Elena looked at me with nothing but surprise and awe in her eyes, as we begun to sway to the music.

I'm dying to catch my breath
Oh why don't I ever learn?
I've lost all my trust,
though I've surely tried to turn it around

Can you still see the heart of me?
All my agony fades away
when you hold me in your embrace

Don't tear me down for all I need
Make my heart a better place
Give me something I can believe
Don't tear me down
You've opened the door now, don't let it close

I'm here on the edge again
I wish I could let it go
I know that I'm only one step away
from turning it around

Can you still see the heart of me?
All my agony fades away
when you hold me in your embrace

Don't tear me down for all I need
Make my heart a better place
Give me something I can believe

Don't tear it down, what's left of me
Make my heart a better place

I tried many times but nothing was real
Make it fade away, don't break me down
I want to believe that this is for real
Save me from my fear
Don't tear me down

Don't tear me down for all I need
Make my heart a better place
Don't tear me down for all I need
Make my heart a better place

Elena and I just swayed back and forth on the dance floor to the music that our understanding founded from. As I held Elena in my arms, I looked over on my life and realized until I met her, I just existed. I was a creature...a predator of the night. For the longest time, I felt like I was pretending to be something I wasn't for Elena's sake. Tonight, there was no pretending. For the first time in over a century, I felt human. Once the song ended, Elena cleared her throat and excused herself to go to the washroom. Maybe I crossed a line, being so close to her. She retreated from the washroom just minutes later as I was paying the cheque. Once we were in the car, she was kind of quiet, but not silent.

"Can we hang out at your place for a bit? It's couples night at my house and it's kind of awkward...especially Jeremy and Bonnie" she admitted.

"Oh yeah, how's that going?" I asked.

"From what I accidentally walked in on the other day, pretty well..."

"Wow..."

"What?"

"I just...didn't think he had it in him..." I said between laughs. Elena joined in too. Once we arrived at the house and went inside, Elena excused herself and went upstairs. I heard a drawer opening so I assumed she was getting changed. She came back down a few minutes later but now she wasn't formally dressed. She was sporting sweats and a black tank top. Her hair previously curly hair had now flattened to waves and she put it in a high ponytail. Elena had wiped off all her makeup and she looked just as beautiful as she did at the beginning of the night, if not more.

She found her way to the couch and snuggled into my chest. Another yawn erupted from her mouth and she sighed in contentment. I put my arm around her and stroked her hair soothingly. We sat there for a little while – in complete silence – with nothing but the sound of the crackling fire and Elena's steady heartbeat for miles. It wasn't until I heard Elena snoring lightly beside me that I realized she had fallen asleep in my arms. I contemplated staying where we were but I know from experience that the couch wasn't very comfortable. I scooped her up gently in my arms and carried her upstairs to my bed.

"Stay with me..." Elena whimpered, lightly tugging at my arm. I smiled and nodded. I went to the other side of the bed and changed into my sweats. I took off my shirt and climbed under the sheets. Elena made her way over to me and she laid her head on my bare chest. I continued stroking her hair whilst staring at the moon from my bed. I fell asleep to the steady rhythm of Elena's heartbeat and I realized it had become my favourite melody.