If you haven't read the prequel to this called The Interim, here's a summary of each character's history and vampire status:

Damon and Elena- Travelled for 2 years after she graduated high school and before she went to college. Damon works at some mystery business firm and Elena is studying literature and creative writing at a small liberal arts college in California.

Stefan- Found an alternative cure after 2 years of searching. Human and in Harvard undergrad. He plans to go to medical school and pursue his human dream of becoming a doctor.

Bonnie- Still a witch, but not an out of control one like in the current tv show.

Caroline- She debated taking the cure for a while due to her relationship with Tyler, but eventually decided to three years after Stefan did (about 6 months before this story starts).

Tyler- Still a hybrid, didn't want to take the cure and be a werewolf who had to turn every full moon again.

Klaus- Hybrid. Unknown whereabouts at this point.

Bonnie's Mom- She took the cure and is now a human/witch.

Originals- Daggered in a box (vampires), last we heard.

When Elena had pictured her wedding as a little girl, she pictured the little church in Mystic Falls that her parents married in. The very few times she thought of it, it was a blurry watercolor of white and black and the happy faces of her friends as she walked down the isle- the basic wedding that she had seen once or twice from her parent's photographs. What she hadn't pictured was white sand beaches, exotic flora, parrots cooing in the distance and a priest with beads in his hair.

But Damon brought out her adventurous side. He made her want to challenge all of her preconceived ideas of what her life could be.

Elena sat next to the ocean, fussing nervously with her white sundress-style wedding dress as she fought the butterflies in her stomach. Bonnie and Caroline, decked out in brightly colored native-fashion bridesmaid dresses, plopped down on either side of her. Bonnie and Caroline had flown up with Matt, Tyler and Jerome in tow for a mini vacation and the very small ceremony.

Bonnie scooped up a fistful of sand in her brown hands, marveling at how clean and white it was.

"This is so cool. Screw Mystic Falls, you all better be ready for another island wedding when I get married." Caroline sighed, inhaling the salty air.

"It is beautiful here." Bonnie let the sand pass from her hands. "How are you doing? You ok?"

"Oh god, I'm so nervous! Thank you both for coming all the way out here, I really needed you guys." Elena burst out and hugged them both to her, reveling in the comfort of their closeness.

"You're our best friend! What's a ridiculously expensive plane ticket when you paid for… well, all of it. How did you manage that, by the way?"

"Damon and I won a ton of money in Atlantic city a couple months ago." Elena admitted, a little jittery. Using their vampire skills to win money wasn't exactly ethical, but Elena wasn't going to fuss over it when gambling itself was such a moral grey zone for her.

Caroline raised a brow and Bonnie frowned a little, but they quickly moved past it since they were where they were.

"Well it's understandable to be nervous." Bonnie said, bringing the conversation back to the original topic. "That's what we're here for."

"Yeah, but you aren't going to try to talk me out of it, right?" Elena looked between them.

"I'm done fighting your slightly insane romance with Damon." Caroline huffed, but then she continued, "I think he's changed a lot. I don't know if he'll ever fully deserve you, but I'm not going to try to talk you out of it."

"What Caroline means is we know how happy you two are together." Bonnie clarified. "I think you're making the right decision." Bonnie had perfected her bridesmaid's duties.

"I'm not nervous about who I'm marrying- I love Damon, I love him so much… I can't imagine doing this with anyone else. It's just… you know, it's marriage! I think I'm just freaking out over the idea of it. It's such a weighty promise. I hope I can make him happy."

"You already do, Elena. That's for sure." Caroline rolled her eyes. "Damon's gotten, like, a zillion times nicer since you started dating. I think he might even hesitate to kill me if given the option to now. There's no doubt that he's happy."

Elena couldn't get over how beautiful it was here. The sun was getting low, reflecting reds and oranges off the waves. it was almost time. Damon promised not to peek at her until she walked down the isle, a strong superstition left over from his human days no doubt, yet she wished he would characteristically throw tradition to the wind and visit her. She really wanted to bury herself in his arms, smell his smell and feel what she always knew when she was in his arms- that they had and could make it through anything.

"It's time, isn't it?" Elena looked at Bonnie. Bonnie slowly smiled, then stood up and extended her hand. Elena took a deep breath and placed her hand in hers, letting Bonnie help her up off the sand.

"You look beautiful, Elena. Damon's gonna freak." Caroline giggled.

Elena's eyes fluttered open suddenly. Her heart was beating quickly and she felt something was very wrong. Damon's breath in her ear soothed her, and she turned to disappear in his arms, pressing her nose to his chest and breathing in his presence to steady her. Why did dreaming of our wedding day make me feel this way? Elena wondered, closing her eyes and waiting for the surge of unease to dissipate.

Damon nuzzled the top of her head and drew his arms tighter around her, holding her to his chest. The gesture definitely helped, and in a few moments she was breathing normally.

Quietly, she disentangled herself from him and padded through the small rented house. She walked out on the balcony, the cool air hitting her suddenly and refreshing her sleep-addled mind.

She stood there for a few minutes, listening to the trees whistle in the wind and enjoying the dark beauty of the seaside. There were more buildings, but it was similar to the Bahamas. She could see the moonlight on the ocean less than ten blocks away, which she loved.

"What are you doing up?" Damon was leaning with arms crossed against the doorway, watching her. His bare chest was so beautiful in the pale moonlight.

"I just… I had a dream that woke me up." Damon took in her expression and then walked over to lock his arms around her and kiss her forehead.

"What happened?"

"Nothing bad. It was a wonderful dream. I dreamt of the day we got married. But then I woke up feeling so… wrong." Elena shivered. Damon's eyebrows pressed together. She realized abruptly how that must have sounded.

"I mean… You know what I meant. I'm sorry, I'm still not myself." Damon stroked her hair, searching her face.

"Why don't you come back to bed? I'll make you forget about these bad feelings." He teased, wiggling his eyebrows a little with promise. Elena smiled, amazed at how his lighthearted goading could lift her spirits.

"That actually sounds perfect." She kissed his tempting lips and let him lead her inside.

Winter break in California wasn't much of a winter anything. Elena missed the cold of Mystic Falls. Damon was off working at some big firm, and Elena spent most of her days at home alone, writing, cleaning or reading.

Elena put her diary down, reading over the entry from the day of her wedding, a resolution made. She reached for the phone.

She wildly considered hanging up in the moments that it rang, but just as she was about to, a voice answered.

"Elena!"

"Stefan, hi." She smiled at the note of surprise in his voice. She realized then how long it had been since they last talked.

"Elena, it's good to hear from you. How are you? School going well?"

"I'm doing really well. I love school. College is amazing. How is the prestigious Harvard? Are you tired of applying to Medical Schools yet?"

"It's hard, but good. I'm enjoying being alive, let's just say that. The applications are definitely a pain." Elena felt a twinge.

"Stefan, the reason I was calling… well, I guess I'll just ask. Do you still have the cure?" Elena's heart beat quickly.

Stefan was silent for a long moment.

"Why?"

"Well, I'm not sure about anything yet, but I just wanted to know if it was still an option."

Stefan was quiet.

"Elena, I don't have it anymore." Rocks filled Elena's stomach and she swallowed hard. "I gave what was left of it to Damon."

"What?" Elena breathed faintly.

"He asked me for it a year ago. He wanted to talk to you about the possibility of taking it when you were done with school. I really think you should bring it up with him though, this isn't my place." Stefan sounded very uncomfortable. Elena was still reeling.

"Yeah, I definitely will. Thanks, Stefan." She didn't really know what else to say.

"Keep in touch. Let me know what happens." Stefan hung up.

The moment Elena heard Damon's keys jingling in the door she sprung to her feet, a mess of nerves. She couldn't think about anything else all day.

"Hey." Damon closed the door behind him, the smile on his face dying the moment he saw the state she was in.

"I talked to Stefan." Elena said simply, her voice shaking. Damon set his briefcase down next to the door very slowly. "You have the cure?" Elena asked.

"Yes." Damon admitted, his eyes sliding away from hers. He pulled off his jacket and laid it on the chair. They stared at each other for a moment, then Elena walked around the couch to be closer.

"Do you really want me to take it? You want to take it?"

"Elena, it's much more complicated than that." Damon said, frustrated. "These past few years with you have been more than anything I ever thought I could deserve, and when you chose to be a vampire with me, I thought nothing could be as perfect. But the more time I spent with you, living here with you, going to work like a normal person, watching you go to school… the more I realized that what I wanted with you wasn't what I thought I wanted when I celebrated your choice to stay a vampire."

Elena couldn't speak, she could only wait for these magical words to continue. Damon looked away, almost embarrassed.

"I want a real life with you. I want to be able to have kids. I want to make something with you that will last when we die, because we both know that immortals don't live forever." Damon confessed quietly, his bright blue eyes burning into hers.

"Do you really mean that?" Elena felt tears prickling her eyes.

"I used to think that I was too far gone from humanity, that I couldn't ever return to a normal human life. That's why I was so relieved when you stayed a vampire. Ecstatic. Now, we're going through the motions of a normal life and I don't feel out of place at all. It's completely natural. But it's empty… there's nothing at the end of it in our future. I just really want to have kids with you." Damon enfolded her in his arms and kissed her sweetly at the end of his speech.

"I can't believe this is real." Elena said, a sob choking her.

"Sorry it took me so long to say it." Damon whispered, tucking her hair behind her ear. "I know this is what you want, but you didn't know if I wanted it too."

He always knew what she was feeling before she did.