Unexpected Chances

Chapter 4

Stefan leaned back into his chair as he looked over at Elena and cleared his throat. "Well, as you know, I'm a lawyer and I work long hours." He said awkwardly as Elena nodded. Of course she knew that he was a lawyer, he carried himself like one. When Elena had walked into his office and when she had looked over at his couch, he had a pillow on the right side of it and a thick blanket lying over the right side of arm rest. Stefan also had the same black shiny shoes like his brother and the posed way that he walked was a dead giveaway that he was serious man.

"Rebekah, my ex-wife. Hated that I worked long hours and wasn't spending enough time with her and so just like you and Damon, Rebekah and I grew apart. But, really we were never good for each other; it was marriage of convenience because she had told me and convinced that she was pregnant with my child...." Stefan said sadly as he picked up his already half empty coffee mug and waved the red headed waitress over to pour him another. He watched as the young woman smiled and walked over to them, quickly pouring him some more coffee as she grinned at him and then disappeared again.

"Rebekah had everyone convinced and fooled into thinking that she was pregnant and so my parents and our uncle told me to "do the right thing." To marry her, even if we didn't get along...we would learn to love each other for the baby's sake." Stefan said solemnly as he looked over at Elena was now looking at him with a surprised expression on her face and a saddened ache in her heart.

"So, was she really pregnant...?" Elena asked. She casually pushed a strand of her long brown hair from her face and hoped that she wasn't preying too much into his personal life.

"No. Rebekah had lied about the whole thing. She paid off one of her friends to get the young woman's ultra sound photos and then she got one of those fake baby bumps from a store. She was good at fooling us all. Eventually, I guess, when she had gotten sick of keeping up the con. She had a 'miscarriage' and then two months later after I was still reeling from her lies and trying to make sense of it all. She disappeared. Rebekah sent me divorce papers in the mail and a note saying that she had found someone new." Stefan said as he exhaled deeply. This had been the first time, in the last six months that he had told anyone but Damon about what had happened to him and Rebekah.

"Did Rebekah ever let you come to any of her doctor's appointments that she had...like you know. Checkups for the baby?" Elena asked.

She watched as Stefan shook his head. "No. Never, she would always make up some excuse or she would say that the only time that she would be able to make an appointment would be during the times that I was at work..." Stefan's voice trailed off as he picked up his coffee cup again and took a deep breath, losing himself in the memories of his nightmare of a relationship that he had with his ex-wife.

"I'm so sorry about Rebekah. You didn't deserve any of what she did to you. It wasn't right." Elena said sadly as she reached over and placed her hand over Stefan's. She gently caressed his hand as she watched him lift his head up in surprise, smiling at her sweetly and silently wondering why was it that he couldn't have found someone like Elena a lot sooner.

"Elena...You're the first person...Except for my brother, that I have ever told, about me and my-ex. Thank you for listening." Stefan told her sincerely as he too smiled at her and watched as she nodded. She understood what it felt like to be heartbroken, to be the one that wanted nothing more than to move on from feeling like your heart was being slowly ripped out of your chest.

"You're welcome...Thank you too. For the coffee and for...for understanding." Elena told him softly as she went back to sipping her coffee. Just when she was about to ask him another question about himself, his phone rang and he excused himself from his seat. Elena watched carefully as Stefan stepped outside into the now almost darkening sky. It had already been over an hour since they had sat down and started talking and she couldn't think of anywhere else that she would want to be.

XXXX

Stefan stepped out into the cool evening night as the familiar ring tone buzzed excessively in his pocket, he didn't even need to look at the caller I.D. to know who it was.

"How many times do I need to tell you to stop, already?" Stefan shouted angrily as he heard her giggle over the phone and he could picture her sitting somewhere, twirling her hair and rolling her big brown eyes.

"She's pretty Stefan...I for one, thought that you liked curled haired brunettes." Katherine commented as her velvety voice sang through the cell phone in her hands.

"Where are you!" Stefan demanded as he looked across the street and saw nothing. But as he turned his head. That was when he felt his stomach churn with disgust, Katherine Pierce was stalking him like he was her prey and she was a hungry wolf ready to attack at a moment's notice.

"Leave me alone Katherine! Oh and tell, Rebekah to find someone else besides you to do her bidding for her...Your not a very good spy." Stefan commented as he looked through the window of the same diner that he and Elena were sitting at and that's when he saw her. Those lean long legs were crossed over each other as she sat in the corner of a booth with a cup of something in her hands. Katherine had a wicked smirk on her face as she looked through the window and her eyes landed and locked with Stefan's. He hung up the cell phone and tried his best to keep calm as he walked back into the diner and back to the empty seat where Elena was sitting. Stefan watched her smile go a bit wide as she saw him walk in and he leaned towards her and whispered into her ear. "Do you want to go somewhere else and talk?" He asked, as he watched Elena nod her head in agreement.

As Stefan helped Elena put her black pea coat over her small frame and watched as she straightened herself out. He turned and left a tip for the waitress and then he threw a daring and meaningful look in Katherine's direction. "Leave me alone!" Stefan mouthed towards her as he walked out of the diner with Elena, placing his hand on the small of her back as they walked into the cool Chicago evening air.