Until This Lie Do Us Part

Chapter 23

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Stefan leaned against the bathroom doorway, his arms crossed, as he watched Elena take the braid out of her hair and comb her fingers through it. He had learned to love watching her get ready for bed. It was nice to see her get out of her makeup and just be herself.

She saw Stefan in the mirror staring at her. "I'll be out in a moment" she said, realizing she was taking up a lot of the time in the bathroom. His bathroom.

Stefan shrugged. "There's no hurry" he told her, walking the rest of the way in. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder. "Can I talk to you about something?" he asked.

Elena smiled. "Of course" she said, continuing to stare at him through the mirror.

Stefan sighed. "Today Lily told me that Damon and Katherine have been fighting a lot lately. In front of her" he explained. "And I don't know what to do" he added. "I worry about her."

Elena leaned her head against his. "You should try talking to Damon. Maybe he can talk to Lily and try a little harder to not expose her to any of that" Elena suggested.

Stefan nodded. "I could try that. But he's not much for me giving him parenting advice" he replied.

It was Elena's turn to sigh. "Brothers suck" she said.

"No word from yours?" he asked. Elena shook her head no, avoiding eye-contact with him. "Hey" he said, turning her around to face him. "Whether he shows tomorrow or not, you've still got me" he said, nuzzling the crook of her neck before kissing her.

"Better than nothing I suppose" she said and he could hear the smile in her voice. "But if you wanted to, you could take my mind off of things" she suggested.

His head flew up so he could look at her. Then he grinned. "I think I can definitely take your mind off of things" he said. He picked her up suddenly and tossed her over his shoulder. She laughed all the way to the bed as he dropped her on the mattress and fell on top of her. He reached over and fumbled with the switch on the lamp and finally got it turned off.

Elena continued to laugh as he attempted to get her clothes off in the dark. "You are terrible at this" she told him, sitting up and helping him get her shirt off.

He was already pushing her back down, kissing her. "Maybe I don't get enough practice" he mumbled against her lips.

"Excuses" she said, pressing on his shoulders and flipping them over before attacking his lips again. He didn't seem to mind their new position, especially not when she was kissing down his chest. It drove him crazy actually, but he kind of liked the effect she had on him. Elena smiled when she heard him groan from impatience.

"Elena" he breathed out. Elena sat up and stared at him for a moment with a silly smile on her face. He sat up too, his arms finding their way around her. "You're amazing" he breathed heavily, kissing her shoulder.

Elena felt herself blush at the comment. The simple comment that made her feel special. "It's nice to hear someone say that" she said, resting her head against his.

Stefan grabbed her face in his hands gently, staring into her eyes. He could see in her eyes, so many years of being told she was worthless, no good. How anyone could do that, he would never know. Of course she wasn't perfect. But she was a lot closer to perfection than he was. "I want to hear you say it" he told her. She looked at him curiously, not quite sure what he was asking. "Say that you're amazing" he told her, stroking her cheek lightly.

And then Elena smiled, realizing what he was doing. "I'm amazing" she said softly.

"I can't hear you" he said.