"I realized, after my parents died, that I had to stop living in the past," she responded, her voice wistful and her eyes staring into something far away; something that only she could see. "You live day by day. If you feel, act. If you want something, take it." Her voice regained its resolve, looking back down at him. "People will always disappoint you, Elijah," she said. The smile she gave him was sad. "Always. But forgiveness is our greatest gift. Every human, every vampire, witch, werewolf…or hybrid," she said definitively, her eyes hard and resolute as she thought about Klaus, "has a soul. It's what sets us apart. And it allows us to show others grace, mercy. Forgiveness has no limits unless you form them within your own mind." Her eyes lit up. "And there is no better feeling in the world – nothing – than seeing your positive influence pay off. Even if it takes years of hard work, of boundless enthusiasm and an immeasurable amount of amnesty," she continued passionately, "it is always worth it. To see the light inside a person come to life…it's gratifying, overwhelming even.
"I believe that that kind of love – not the romantic kind or familial kind, but the kind of love you can share with the world, the kind of attitude that can influence people for the better – is truly the greatest force on Earth. No amount of darkness can extinguish that sort of hope: the hope and faith in people, and the world, and yourself. I will work hard all of my life to never let go of that." She smiled grimly. "No one will take that away from me. No matter what trials I must face."
He stared up at her in awe; amazed and astonished at the words she had spoken. It was several minutes before he replied, and he was even more entranced by her comfortable silence, content to wait patiently as he tried to find the words to say, fingers once again tracing patterns across his torso, her other elbow resting on the ground, her hand supporting her head as she stared at his chest.
When he didn't find the right words to say – too lost in his own jumbled thoughts, unable to make heads nor tails of the information and feelings pinging around in his brain – she leaned up to brush her lips across his before pulling back to look him in the eye. "Don't over-think it, Elijah," she said, her tone soft and her eyes kind. The tenderness that shined forth from her bright eyes made all of his thoughts seize. He had come to only one conclusion and one only – it was the only one that mattered. The rest of the turmoil in his mind could wait.
He was in love with her.
Before he let the idea – no, the realization – scare him, he allowed the words to escape. They surged effortlessly from his chest through his windpipe and from between his lips, and, strangely enough, he did not regret them.
"I love you, Elena."
She gave him that sunny smile again: the one he wanted to see every moment of every day for the rest of his immortal existence. She said nothing, just leaned up to press her lips firmly against his, kissing him with every pent up emotion that had just been itching to escape. His lips opened beneath hers and their tongues and lips tangled with each other, their eyes closed, while her free hand entwined her fingers with his, holding on for dear life. His other hand moved to bury itself in her thick waterfall of hair, angling her head for better access to her hot mouth.
He couldn't help but speculate as to what else she could do with that mouth.
His dirty thoughts getting the better of him, his cock becoming almost completely erect within the span of a couple of minutes, he pulled away from her, reluctant to remove his lips from hers. She had, subsequently, become his addiction. He craved her more than he craved blood; his bloodlust shrank into nothing in the shadow of his lust for her. His love for her.
Love. Not just love: love for a woman. A human woman, he mused, stroking her hair and gazing into her eyes intently.
"How have you done this to me, Elena?" he asked her, his voice almost a whisper, soft as satin; the sound of him speaking gave her goose bumps. "How have you managed to tie my dead heart into knots so effortlessly?"
