Perfect Match

Chapter 22

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Discreetly, Elena and Stefan, hand in hand, sauntered through their suite's door. They were grinning slightly and secretly, the main indication that their date had been more than perfect. Stefan silently closed the door behind them, an attempt not to wake any of their roommates.

"Have a good date?" Caroline asked from the couch, making Stefan and Elena jump and dart their gazes to the blonde girl giggling mischievously.

"Caroline," Elena breathed, biting her lip to hide her grin. Her hand, which had previously been entwined with Stefan's, moved up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. "We thought everyone would still be asleep."

Caroline rolled her eyes playfully. "We've been up! Bonnie went surfing, Damon ran off." She furrowed her brows. "No... he snuck off."

"Of course he did," Elena muttered under her breath, so quietly that no one –Stefan– could hear.

"Hey, I'm not complaining though!" Caroline continued, her voice as perky as ever. "No Damon is absolutely fine with me. You guys ready for that Stars Tell All show today?"

"I guess so," Elena shrugged. "It'll be good to finally announce that we are together again." She smiled at her friend, but when she heard no response from Stefan, she furrowed her brows. "Right, Stefan?" He was being awfully quiet...

Confusedly, Elena turned around, her eyes landing on Stefan's distant face and furrowed brows. "Stefan?"

After blinking a few times, he glanced around with dazed eyes. "Yeah, yeah, it'll be, it'll be good..." He forced out a smile that only worried Elena more.

"You okay?" Caroline asked, her voice suddenly not as high as before.

"Of course," he answered flatly. "I'm just going to get a little more sleep. I'm tired."

A little smirk curled on Caroline's face as she looked between the two of them. "I bet you are," she chuckled.

Elena, though, wasn't convinced. "You slept fine last night. You shouldn't be tired."

Stefan sighed out deeply. "I just want a little nap... Just an hour, love." He gave her a quick, reassuring peck on the lips, while Caroline was still swooning over the fact that Stefan called Elena 'love.'

"I'll go with you, then," Elena argued, concerned with the sudden bags under Stefan's eyes. He didn't bother arguing, so she took him by the hand and slowly led him into the room with the bigger bed. Maybe now would be a good time to tell him about Damon and Katherine...

His back hit the cool, white sheets, a quiet, relaxed moan escaping his lips as his eyes drifted closed. Turning onto her side, Elena gazed at Stefan's handsome features. His face, tilted towards her own, was completely breathtaking; it always was. Every day, she couldn't help but ask herself how on earth she'd gotten so lucky. A love like this, it seemed too good to be true, too perfect to last. Would it? She couldn't help but wonder... what would happen when senior year was over, when Stefan would inevitably go to Stanford and be forced to leave her behind? Maybe she would follow him. She'd happily follow him across the universe if it meant that they could share little moments like this... simple moments when she would just stare at him and he wouldn't mind one bit.

Still keeping his eyes closed, Stefan leaned forward and kissed the very tip of Elena's nose. She crinkled it, giggling. His lips curled up in a relaxed smile, his arms winding around her waist. "You feeling okay, baby?" she whispered lightly, her foot slowly running up and down his calf.

"Mmmhmm." Stefan rested his forehead against hers. "My chest hurts a lil'."

"Oh." That was understandable. After all, his chest was repeatedly pressed on by electric paddles a few weeks ago. As much as she wanted to tell him about the things she had seen, she figured it could wait another hour, until he was feeling less pain. "I thought you said you were getting better though..."