All right, here we go, the real deal, the last chapter. I must say I am saddened that this story must come to an end, but at the same time I am happy to announce that I have made it all the way through to the end of another story. The last chapter of any story I feel is the most satisfying to the author. The last chapter shows how you continued through the story even if you hit writers block or your life was moving a million miles a minute. To all of my readers out there, thank you! I write for all of you, and your support and encouraging words have kept me going. I am so blessed to have such wonderful people taking the time to read my stories. :) So, a general all around thank you, and I hope you will enjoy and review the LAST CHAPTER of As He Lay Dying. THANK YOU!

-I Own Nothing (Wish I Did) -Lioness002

Previously...

With determination blazing through my veins, I clenched my fists and pushed off the counter. I needed to steel my nerves and do some damage control, because this small scene could make or break our relationship. I wasn't about to let Damon run away from me just because my friends disproved. I wasn't going to let him win and have the easy way out. No matter what he thinks, he deserves love, real, honest, and passionate love.

I sighed and walked out of the kitchen and into the parlor looking for Damon. My stomach was twisted into a knot of worry, regret, sorrow, and even a bit of fear. Everything had been going fine until Caroline and Bonnie had shown up. How could they have done that to me? To Damon? Caroline and Damon were friends, so how could she just stand by and let Bonnie totally trash him? I clenched my teeth as I walked out of the parlor and up the stairs to Damon's room. The door was closed and everything was quiet, but I knew he was inside. I sighed and leaned my head lightly against the wood and knocked softly.

"Damon…can I come in?" I asked biting my lip and waiting for a reply. When I was met with silence, I steeled my nerves and put my hand onto the doorknob. "I'm coming in." I warned before I opened up the door and stepped inside. Once I was inside the room, I saw Damon leaning against the doorway of his French doors with a bottle of bourbon in hand. "Damon…" I chocked out. The second he went to alcohol, I knew he was hurting.

Damon didn't flinch and he didn't turn as I walked into the room and closed the door behind me. "You can leave now, date night is over Elena. It was over before it even began." Damon snarled tightly as he brought the bottle up to his lips and took a large swig of the amber liquid. I flinched and wrung my hands together nervously as I stared at his back; he was completely shutting me out. Where was the warmth that I had seen and felt earlier? Where was the love?

"I'm not leaving, because I don't think this night is over." I said stubbornly. I had put too much effort into cultivating this relationship; we had both suffered too much for either of us to give up now.

"Oh, it's over." Damon laughed bitterly shaking his head in the process and tightening his grip on the bottle to the point of almost breaking.

"Why?" I snapped. "What about all the effort you put into tonight? What about your plans for us? You worked so hard for this, I know you did!" I pleaded trying to get any emotion out of him.

Damon scoffed and shook his head. "Effort and time is pointless when a relationship is doomed to fail before it even begins. Didn't you hear Elena?" Damon growled darkly. "I'm a heartless, soulless monster who cares about no one but himself. I'll break your heart and destroy your happiness."

"Stop it! What Bonnie and Caroline said was not true!" I whispered intently as I came up behind Damon and placed my hand on his shoulder. "I…I can't believe either of them would say something like that about you. I never agreed with a word that they said. So please, talk to me, say something." I said biting my lip in anticipation. I waited for what seemed like hours before Damon shook his head and ran a hand across his face.

"They were right you know, about me, about everything." Damon said forlornly as he shrugged off my hand. My mouth popped open in shock and I took a step back.

"What are you talking about? They are not right about you!" I exclaimed in an offended tone. The idea that Damon actually believed what they had said irritated me to no end, he is so much better than that!

"How do you know they're wrong Elena? You've known me for less than a year, you don't have the full story, and you don't know all my sides, my past, my patterns. All you have seen is a sliver of the true me." Damon said chuckling darkly as he turned to look at me with scorn. I gasped and involuntarily took another step back, he looked dark, violent, even scary, when his eyes were cold. "Bonnie was right, I am no good, a cheater, a monster, a player. You know all of this first hand, but yet you still leave yourself open to immense amounts of pain from me." He hissed rolling his eyes. "I can't believe I even thought for a second that we could have a chance to be together." He ground out more to himself than to me.

"Damon…" I tried again. This conversation felt like it was on repeat because all Damon could do was focus on the negatives. All I wanted to do was help soothe Damon's damaged ego and feelings. I wanted him to see what I saw every time I looked at him, I wanted him to see his own radiance, feel the warmth I felt every time he looked at me, feel the safety I felt every time I was around him.

"Elena, stop." Damon ordered tightly. I closed my mouth and wrung my hands nervously as I stared into his dead looking eyes. His usually vivid and lively eyes were dark with sorrow and seemed to be frozen solid. "Don't get me wrong," he sighed closing his eyes and shaking his head, "I would never want to hurt you, but how am I supposed to know what I will feel like in a month? A year? Ten years? A hundred? What if I do get bored? What if I do hurt you? I would never be able to live with the knowledge that I hurt you in such a personal way. I'm not good, I'm not relationship material, and I certainly don't deserve you." He said shaking his head dejectedly.

"Where is all of this coming from?" I asked flabbergasted and enraged. "You're not acting like the Damon Salvatore I know! Where is the over the top arrogance, the edgy and fast paced look on life, the egotistical and excessive self esteem?" I exclaimed irritably as I threw my arms in the air in annoyance.

"Do you really think that's what I'm like?" Damon asked bitterly as he took a swig of his bourbon and glared at me.

"Yes…and no." I said crossing my arms and staring into Damon's eyes willing him to open up to me. "You have your outside mask, your defense. That's the personality you use to blame all your problems on. The personality you use to keep people away from you when all they want to do is help and understand you. That outside mask portrays a self confident, egotistical playboy that cares about no one but himself. You are the life of the party because you have nothing to lose, the guy that other men want to be, and the man girls would kill to be with."

Damon shrugged and smirked darkly. "That's me."

"Yes, it is, but it's only a part of you. It's not all of you, and I have seen both sides, good and bad. And I'm willing to accept all of your sides, characteristics, and personalities."

"Why risk it? Why not go and find some nice human boy to devote yourself to? I'm going to hurt you in the long run!" Damon exclaimed grabbing my shoulders and shaking me roughly. "Do you not see that? I know I will hurt you because I have already done it time and time again!"

I gulped as Damon let go of me and began stalking back and forth. I tried to reach for him, but when he gave me a venomous look, I pulled away. I wanted to cry, I wanted to help him but he wasn't letting me. He wanted to suffer alone, and he wanted me away from him. That much was painfully clear, but I was not going to give up because of some ill placed words.

I blew out a breath and gently grabbed Damon's hand and intertwined our fingers. Damon went rigged from the touch and stopped his pacing to stare at me. I rubbed my thumb over the back of his hand as I had done earlier, and held onto his hands for dear life. "Stop, please." I pleaded staring into his eyes and biting my lip. "I hate it when you do this to yourself. Please don't do this; don't give up because of 'what ifs'."

"They're pretty spot on, 'what ifs'." Damon mumbled. I let out a sigh of relief and felt myself relax slightly; he was opening up a bit. That was much better than having him angry and not listening to me.

"So what?" I shrugged. At that, Damon gave me an incredulous look and raised an eyebrow. "If something does happen and we go out separate ways, at least I will know that I did all I could, that I tried my best and was able to share some time with you. You will have gotten the chance to be with me after fighting for so long, and I will have been given the chance to try to make you happy. I want you to feel the way you make me feel. I want you to feel loved, cherished, protected and accepted by me. That's all I want. I want us to have a chance."

Damon opened his mouth to reply, but no sound came out. It seemed my confusion had overwhelmed him. Was he really so shocked that I would want him to be happy? Moreover, had he not felt honest love enough to know that happiness was something I could give him…or at least try to? "Why do you want me to feel that way?" He finally asked in an exasperated rush.

"Because I love you."

"You...love me?" Damon repeated under his breath in disbelief. When his gaze met mine, it was so open that I thought I could see into his soul. I could see how insecure he was, how vulnerable he was when it came to love, and how much he really wanted this to work.

"Of course I do, I've told you that already."

"Then why do you love me?" Damon asked running a hand through his midnight hair.

I giggled and reached up to wrap my arms around Damon's neck. Damon gave me a hesitant look, but when I smiled at him, he gently wrapped his strong arms around me. "I love you because of the way you make me feel, how you challenge me, your personality, your complexity, your ego, your snaky comments, your passion, your fire, your everything." I rushed as I ran my thumb over his cheek. "I was telling you the truth when I said I loved you. I love you just the way you are, so you don't have to change for me unless you want to. I'm willing to put up with any of your antics, our fights, or our difference of opinion, and work through the bumps, just as long as you are too." I whispered biting my lip. "So, now that I have bared my soul, I wanted to know if you still felt the same way about me." I said lowering my gaze. I had just opened up Pandora's Box and toppled over the thin balance we were holding with each other. Damon's reply could be either the beginning of something great, or the beginning of something very awkward.

Damon was quiet as he contemplated my offer. His eyes were quickly searching mine, looking for any hint of sarcasm or teasing, but there was none. All he saw was sincere and honest love. Damon slowly unlatched his hands from behind my back and rested them on my hips. "Of course I still love you, I never stopped." My breath hitched and my insides turned to flames causing Damon to smirk in response.

"Then why did you just blow me off and practically destroy our chance at trying to be together?" I asked as I slapped him on the chest.

"The only reason I lashed out was because when you first told me that you loved me, it was when I was dying. So today when Bonnie brought up things that I wanted to bury and change, it made me think you kissed me and said those things out of pity. 'Who could love a monster like me? Elena said those things to ease my suffering and play pity me,' I had thought as Bonnie went down the list of all my faults." Damon sighed trailing his fingers gently down my cheek. I wanted to stop him and say that he wasn't a monster, that he was so amazing and wonderful, but Damon quickly put a finger to my lips and silenced me. "My emotional distance on this subject was for my own protection," he continued. "I was worried that if, and when, Stefan returned, you would realize everything Bonnie said was true and go back to him. It would have been easier for me to not have you at all, then to have you for a short time, love you, and you still leave me. Because let's face it, you said it would always be him."

"But it's not him anymore!" I exclaimed as my eyes widened in shock. I thought he knew I was over Stefan.

"That's not necessarily true. This date was to see what we could be as a couple, and I didn't want to force you into something you didn't want after you heard everything Bonnie said. You could have decided after tonight that I was not what you wanted and pined away for Stefan until he returned."

"But Bonnie hasn't changed my mind about you, and I'm done pining after Stefan. I still love you, no matter what." I whispered running my hands down Damon's arms and intertwining our fingers.

We stared at each other for a long time, gazes locked and each of us waiting for the other person to make the first move. What now? Should I kiss him? I want to. However, is it too soon after all of the drama? I didn't have much time to contemplate my options, because the next second, Damon's lips were on mine. I leaned into the kiss instantly and pulled myself as close to him as I could. Damon hummed contently and snaked his arms around my waist as his lips moved steadily against mine. It was just like I remembered, but even better, and that was saying a lot considering the first time I kissed him it had been earth shattering and he had been dying. I am pretty sure he is gifted with the ability to pleasure women, because I have never felt emotions or reactions like this to anyone but him. "Wow." I whispered contently against Damon's lips as I wrapped my arms more securely around his neck.

"Umm hmm." Damon mumbled as he gave me one last soft kiss and pulled away from me. "I guess I am going to have to thank Tyler some time soon." Damon chuckled softly as he and I stared at each other. My brow furrowed in confusion and I gave Damon a questioning glance.

"The only reason this happened is because he bit me. Ergo, I need to thank the darn mutt."

"Oh." I said dumbly. "Well Damon, the next time you want to make me see that I love you, do it in a less deadly way. I think I have shed enough tears in the past few months to last a lifetime; I don't need you being stupid and getting yourself into life and death situations added to the list of things to cry over. You almost dying was enough. Don't do it again." I scolded poking him in the chest with every word. Damon smirked lightly, grabbed my hand, and gently placed a kiss on the back of my hand like he had the day I met him. My rant was cut short as Damon's gaze flicked up to meet mine and I saw that his eyes were full of so many things, love, devotion, loyalty, fire, passion, fear and even glee. I gulped and reached forward to stroke his cheek.

"I promise that from now on I will be more careful." He said as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled us both together. I nestled into his neck and took a deep breath. That's all I needed to hear.

"I'm glad." I murmured giving his neck a soft kiss. Damon purred contently and rubbed sweet circles over my back as I relaxed in his arms. I weaved my fingers into his silky hair and massaged his neck soothingly. Damon relaxed and closed his eyes contently as he held me close, he asked like he was afraid I would disappear in a puff of air.

"I love you Elena, but then again, you already knew that." Damon chuckled after a few minutes of content silence. My breath caught in my throat for just a second, but I quickly took a deep breath and felt warmth pass through my body. He loved me, this night really had changed everything, there was no reason to hide my feelings anymore, I was free to do and say what I pleased when it came to Damon. From now on, all our barriers would be down, we could be absolutely honest with each other, and we wouldn't have to sneak around our feelings like they were poison. We could be together. "So, since we know that we both love each other, I guess that means we have a date to finish." Damon chuckled lightly as he pulled away from me and ran a hand teasingly through my hair. I smiled feeling relief wash through my body and I nodded.

"Yeah, we do."

"Then dinner awaits." Damon smirked tucking my arm into his, leading me out of his room, down the stairs, and through the front door. The date had been rocky in the beginning, but it was just starting, there was still hope for this to turn out right. Just like our relationship. I already knew that the date was going to be spectacular, because how could it not be when I had the most amazing person to share the night with? I had the bubbly and excited feeling in my stomach that this night would have a lot in store. For me. For Damon.

For us.

Tonight is the night, and I'm not going to waste a second. We are starting over, it is the beginning of a new day, and it is the beginning of something grand.

And so it ends. I have to thank every single one of you that has been here for me through all of this. I am so blessed to have such wonderful and supportive fans such as you! :) Poor Damon! :( At least Elena comforted him and they worked it out. Yay! So, the happy couple survived all the drama, dying, and stress and their relationship will continue to grow and evolve from here. I left the ending open because it felt right for them. If I went into the date I feel like that would have been…expected and boring. This is the story's resolution. Damon and Elena never have it easy, but this way it shows that they have a bunch of possibilities for the future. So again, thank you to everyone and I hope you enjoyed the last chapter enough to leave me one last review. So thank you and I hope to hear from all of you again on my new stories. :) Thanks!

Love, Lioness002

P.S. If you want to know what Elena's dress looked like, the link is on my profile. Enjoy. :)