The Long Con

23. I Will Always Love You

"Elijah, why are we at this bar?" Elena asked shaking her head with a laugh. "This wasn't exactly a highlight in our relationship." She cringed at the memory of him lashing out at her.

"I thought maybe we could use a redo." He shrugged with a slight chuckle. 

"I don't know, in the end, I think it worked out quite nicely." Elena smiled before pulling him into a kiss. When they parted, he rested his forehead on hers. 

"Can I buy you a drink?" She softly replied and they sat down at the bar.

"I love you." It was the first time she said it without the weight of the scheme weighing her down. She really did honestly love him and now nothing was holding her back. "I love you so much."

"It's just one drink, Elena." He teased at her sudden burst of affection. "I love you too."

Rebekah felt her heart sink when her eyes landed on him. A rush of emotions went over her and she kissed him. He deepened it, having missed the feeling of being with her. 

"I'm so sorry Bekah," Marcel mumbled as he held her in his arms. "It has been torture without you." He sighed. Rebekah thought about everything that had happened since she had been separated from Marcel. She had been betrayed by Caroline, Stefan had manipulated her and she had moved into a shared apartment that was the size of her closet. And yet it had been the best time in her life.

"I will always love you, Marcellus." Rebekah cupped his cheek and stared into his eyes. "But I'm not in love with you anymore." He had known it was coming but it was so much worse.

"Bekah-"

"You are an incredible man and I know you will find someone who can love you the way you deserve. It's just not me." He backed out of the room and left the apartment. 

Caroline left the apartment to give Rebekah some space to deal with Marcel. Things had been tense since their conversation but one thing had stuck in her mind. Stefan. She called him to meet her at the bar where they had first met. 

"So...You know Katherine?" She crossed her arms as he sipped his bourbon. 

"Yes." 

"Were you working for her the whole time?" Caroline studied him skeptically. 

"No. She asked for my help at the masquerade ball. She wanted me to keep Rebekah occupied so she wouldn't notice anything suspicious." He explained. Caroline cursed Katherine in her mind for making the situation even more complicated than it was.

"Are you still working for her?" 

"No. I told Rebekah everything." Everything clicked for Caroline.

"That's how she knew." Caroline gasped. "So what now? What's next for you?" 

"If Rebekah breaks up with Marcel today, I'm going to do whatever it takes to win her back. If she doesn't, I'm going to get out of Chicago. Travel the world or something." He shrugged. 

"Well, if you need a travel companion, I might need a quick getaway." Caroline laughed weakly and Stefan shook his head at her. 

"Everything is going to be fine Care."

Elena and Elijah left the bar and went to the coffee shop where they had their first date. Elijah stopped walking just outside and Elena looked at him weirdly. 

"What's going on?" She wondered.

"Elena Gilbert, when I first met you, I had been scorned. I no longer believed that I would find love. You changed everything. You showed me love was still possible in the most magnificent way. You are the most amazing woman I have ever met and I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you." Elijah lowered himself onto one knee and Elena felt a tear roll down her cheek. He pulled a small box out of his pocket and opened it revealing a beautiful Diamond ring that could have paid for Elena's childhood home. "Will you make me the happiest man in the world and agree to become my wife? Will you marry me?"

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes, yes!" He slid the ring onto her finger and she tackled him in a hug. He held her in his arms as he stayed knelt on the ground. She kissed him over and over and over. She was on cloud 9 and nothing was going to ruin her happiness. 

Or so she thought.