The Start of Something New

The pain of being dumped by elena and the maple tree was almost to much to bear. Could he let his heart be vulnerable again? The cactus was waiting for him to take her out on their first date, but stefan was getting anxious."How can i make this date abysmally boring," he thought to himself.

Stefan knew that the way to a woman's heart was to bore them to tears! That was his secret technique with women, but for some reason this hadn't worked out with Elena or the maple tree. It angered him to know that they both dumped him for his brother Damon, but what they saw in damon was a complete mystery to him."I dont get it. He keeps women on their toes. He's so charismatic and funny! Why do women look twice at this guy?" he thought miserably.

But he couldn't worry about damon just now. He was worried about cactus and their new lovely love relationship. For now it was going to be kept a secret. Keeping things a secret were his specialty. Another one of his wonderful qualties besides frowning all the time, ruining 'buttoning shirts' moments, and of course being boring - he was also an excellent liar!

"Okay, no more dilly dallying, time to head off to my soul mate! To my cactus!" Stefan exclaimed.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Stefan practiced his many brooding faces in front of the mirror before he felt ready to leave his room. Once he thought he looked depressed enough, he went down the stairs only to be greeted by hysterical laughing from Elena."Elena? Laughing?" thought Stefan, "I've never heard Elena laugh that way when she was with me. I wonder why?"

When he got to the bottom of the staircase, he saw Damon and Elena snuggled on the couch together, their faces only inches apart.

"Helloooo brother!" Damon proclaimed. This startled Elena who seemed to have been in some sort of trance before.

"They must have been just playing some game on the couch...yeah thats it..they were playfully wrestling eachother that's all!" Stefan told himself. That must be it because in Stefan's head, he was always right."What was so funny?" Stefan frowned."Damon and I...well we were..." Elena stuttered while shamefully blushing."I was simply being my usual humorous self" Damon finished for her. In that second, Damon and Elena stared at each other meaningfully."I'm sure Elena is dreading ever breaking up with me." Stefan thought.

"So brother, you're dressed up nice. Are you actually going out on a date?" Damon asked mockingly. Elena all of a sudden bit her lip trying to hold back her laughter. "Oh poor Elena. Look how jealous she is that im going out. She is even biting her lip because of the pain she is in," Stefan thought.

"It's none of your business Damon," Stefan said monotonously. Then he left closing the door behind him, but not before he heard Elena give another laugh."Wow that girl is so damaged after leaving me. She has become hysterical." Stefan said to himself, and with that he was on his way to his Cactus!

The Date

Stefan was driving in his car all the while dreaming of his soul mate--Cactus! He loved to envision her thorns and her green complexion. He then decided to turn up the music when he heard, "I'm in love with a girl," by Gavin Degraw."I'm in love with a cactus. I'm in love with...I'm in love with a cactus. I'm in love with," sang Stefan. He then cracked himself up with his wittiness.Stefan thought, "My brother has nothing on me. And people call him funny." For the next hour, Stefan amused himself with his "clever" joke.

"So instead of saying I'm in love with a girl, I took out the word girl and inserted the word cactus...hahaha so now instead of saying I'm in love with a girl, I say im in love with a cactus..hahah...cause im really truly deeply in love with my cactus!" and with that he finally arrived at the desert to pick up the cactus. There she was! Like a diamond in the rough! His cactus!

Stefan got out of his car and opened the car door for cactus."Hey there lovely love of my lovliest of lovliest lovely love!"

Stefan exclaimed. Stefan thought to himself how romantic he must sound. Without a word, the cactus got in the car and off the romantic couple went on their first date!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Stefan finally arrived at Fells Diner. It was in a pretty secluded area which was perfect for his secret affair with Cactus. Cactus had been pretty quiet in the car ride over here."That was one boring car ride---just the way i like it" Stefan remarked.

He knew cactus was probably smiling inside but she didn't like to show any happiness. This was his kind of girl! When they walked in the doors, he noticed people's heads turning their way."That is because I'm with the most beautiful date here," he whispered to cactus. Cactus showed no emotion."You keep hiding your emotions like that and we might have to go straight back to my place," Stefan winked.

When they finally sat down at their table, Stefan held on to one of cactus' hands. It was quite painful, but that's what love was all about. Being in pain!"Listen my love. Before I get into a relationship with anyone I must first brainwash them with all the evildoings of my brother Damon..." Before Stefan could go on, he noticed in the corner of the room, two people sitting there. It was Tyler and Bonnie!"What are they doing together?" Stefan asked.

He walked up to their table leaving cactus to check over the menu. Bonnie was the first one to notice."Stefan! What are you doing here?" Bonnie asked startled. Tyler turned around with a mischievous grin on his face."Hey Stefan! Are you here on a date?" Tyler asked."As a matter of fact..."Stefan then pointed to his lovely cactus."Dude, that's a cactus!" Tyler mocked. "Yes I know. I'm one lucky guy. Now are you two out on a date?"

Before Bonnie could answer, Tyler cut her off and said, "Well she's quite the...hot stuff!" while pointing to the cactus."Don't you dare think about getting it on with my cactus!" Stefan yelled. "Dude I was only j..." Stefan's anger riled up and before he could stop himself, he slammed Tyler against the wall.

The Aftermath

"Stefan-what is wrong with you?" Stefan almost didn't hear Bonnie because he was so absorbed in his hands. He was in complete shock of his actions. Bonnie shook Stefan and demanded again to know what was wrong with him."So much is wrong with me. Just so much," Stefan frowned.

Then Bonnie ran over to Tyler to see if he was okay. Tyler slowly got up with so much fury in his eyes. He was nearly growling with rage."Tyler! Don't!" Bonnie warned. Tyler just looked at Stefan and then at Bonnie and his anger subsided."Dude you've got problems!" Tyler yelled.

Then he and Bonnie left without looking back. Stefan only caught Tyler muttering under his breathe something like, "...all this for a cactus."After they left, Stefan walked back to his table with his head bent down. He felt so ashamed. How can he look Cactus in the face? Would she understand how much his love for her consumes him? Makes him this overprotective monster? He finally sat down and looked up at his dear Cactus.

"Cactus...I...OUCH!" Stefan decided to hold on to Cactus' hand as he apologized for his actions, but he got pricked as a result. Tears started swelling up in his eyes.

"My dear Cacty! Please forgive me for my horrible actions! I do not know how you can ever forgive me or want to be with me. I am the worst person ever to exist. I am disgusting. I am repulsive!!!"

"I should stay away from you. Then I'll wait for you to come running after me and then we will be together again, but then I'll tell you to stay away from me again. And I'll warn you how dangerous it is to be with me, but then I'll give in and be with you again only to leave you again only to go back to you."

" But for now I do not know how you could ever be with me because I'm a monster who deserves to be staked over and over again. Self pity self pity self pity self pity bla bla bla bla bla self pity. But the worst thing of all....I EAT BUNNIES!!!!!!!!!"

After 3 hours of his self pity talk, Stefan wiped his tears away and looked long and hard at his love."You know you are such a good listener! You have made me feel so much better, and what was I thinking? Damon is the hidieous monster hahahaha." Then Stefan picked up his Cactus and walked out the door.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I'm going to take you home my little Hotcus," Stefan flirtatiously remarked. When they got in the car, Stefan thought how he would love to take Cactus back to his place and do some naughty stuff, but he was a gentlemen and so he would wait until his Cactus was ready.

Once they reached the desert, Stefan frowned even deeper than he had been frowning all night! "How can I live one night without my love," he thought.He then turned to Cactus and whispered tenderly goodnight. He so deeply wanted to kiss Cactus but he would be patient.

As Cactus got back to her spot on the desert, Stefan started pulling his car away. When he was a good distance away, he parked his car.With a tear rolling down his face, he watched as his Cactus stood there in the desert so beautiful so majestic. As he sat in the car ready for another night of stalking, he thought to himself what a lucky guy he truly was!

The Long Night

"For all you listeners out there, up next is 'How do I live without you' by LeAnn Rimes." Stefan sat in the car staring out at the most beautiful creature he ever laid eyes on.

His love for Cactus spread like wildflowers all over his body. "How do I get through one night without you. If I had to live without you. What kind of life would that be. Oh I, I need you in my arms. Need you to hold. You're my world, my heart, my soul." Stefan raised the volume to his favorite song.

"If you ever leave. Baby you would take away everything good in my life. And tell me now.""Yes YES!!!!! This is exactly how I feel," Stefan yelled. He then began to sing along. "How do I live without you.I want to know.How do I breathe without you. If you ever go. How do I ever, ever survive. How do I. How do I. Oh, how do I live.

"Tears streamed down his face. His heart felt like it was going to explode with love. "I can never live without you my love," he whispered. Then like a flash, he remembered when he last uttered those words.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Stefan remembered like it was yesterday. It was the day of the Founder's Day celebration. He was watching her. Every move. Every breath. She was his. "My Elena," Stefan said dreamily.

She looked like an angel on stage. Her hair in perfect waves. Her dress dreamed out of a fairytale. It was Elena's turn to speak her lines in front of the crowd. She stepped closer to the microphone and looked up. Stefan held his breath. But there was a strange look on Elena's face. She looked like she was in a daze. She was staring at someone, but who? He then noticed her gaze locked in with Damon.

"Damon!" Stefan growled. All of a sudden, Elena ran from the stage and out the doors into the pouring rain. Stefan was about to yell at his brother for whatever he did, but then he noticed Damon was nowhere to be found. Stefan ran out the doors to search for Elena, but she was gone as well.

Stefan returned to the mansion, hoping he would hear from her soon. Pacing back and forth for nearly an hour, Stefan's worry was escalating. Ding Dong! Stefan ran to the door and opened to see it was Elena. She was soaking wet! Her hair was disheveled, her dress was all muddy, her face was full of tears and she was shivering from head to toe.

"Elena what happened?" Stefan asked while taking her inside. "St--efffan..."Elena stuttered. "Elena where were you! How do you expect me to stalk...uh i mean protect you if I don't know where you are!" Stefan explained.

"Stefan I'm sorry. But I can't do this anymore." --- "Do what?"---"Pretend. I can't pretend anymore. It's not fair to you, me or Damon."

"Damon? what does Damon have to do with this?" ---- "Stefan...me and Damon...well we just kissed."---"What!!!!! Were you not wearing your vervain necklace?"----"No, I was."---"So he bribed you!"---"No Stef-"---"He held a gun to your head!"---"NO STEFAN LISTEN TO ME. I kissed him out of my own free will. I love him Stefan!"

"But you love me?" Stefan questioned "I thought I did, but I didn't know what love was until I met Damon. He makes me feel things I've never felt before. I'm sorry Stefan, but that is the truth. I should go."

"No elena!!!!!!!!" Stefan began crying and as Elena tried to leave, Stefan clutched on to her leg not letting her go. "Stefan let go!" -- "But Elena how can I live without you!"

Then suddenly Stefan jerked back into reality. He was back in his car.

Getting Back on Track

He thought he would never love again. He tried to tell Elena she was making a mistake. He knew Damon must have messed with her mind because there is no way anyone would pick his hideous brother over him-especially after all the brainwashing.

He begged Elena for weeks to come back to him. He remembered saying over and over again, "Please lovliest of lovliest darling of darlingiest- I cannot live or breathe without you. Don't you know you belong to me? You are mine!!!"

It seems Elena didn't fall for his charms. He would not believe that their love was over. Late at night, Stefan would sit in the tree outside Elena's bedroom and whisper, "You are mine Elena. You are all mine. I won't give up on you." Then he would watch as Elena sat by the window deep in thought."She's thinking of me," Stefan said excitedly from his tree.

Then he noticed Damon's hands go around her waist and drag her to her bed."Elena I know you still love me," Stefan exclaimed as he waited for Elena to return to her window which she never did that night. But after those couple of weeks, Stefan decided Elena wasn't good enough for him and so he decided to break up with her.

He hoped he didn't break her heart even when Elena look confused and said, "I broke up with you a month ago." Oh that Elena. Whatever she wants to tell herself. Stefan chuckled in his car, thinking how miserable Elena must be without him.

Before he could continue his night of stalking, he felt a deep thirst."It's bunny time!" Stefan shouted.

As he left his car to search for some defenseless animals, Stefan sang, "All the animals better be scared. Stefan Salvatore is gonna get you so beware!!! Hahahahaha."

 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey there little bunny. You can't hide from me little bunny." Stefan was out hunting for a nice fat bunny to quench his thirst. "You don't have to be scared from me little bunny," Stefan mocked. "Oh but he should," Stefan thought to himself and chuckled.

Suddenly out of the corner of his eyes, he saw his prey. "I've got you now. I will eat you. mwahahahaha." The bunny then stared at Stefan without trying to run away. "What's this? A bunny who thinks he could take me on? You think I'm scared of you?" Stefan yelled. But as the bunny kept staring at Stefan, he started to feel beads of sweat roll down his face. "I---I'm nnnnoottt scccarrredddd. You hear me...I am not...No im scared! Please don't hurt me. I'm sorry I eat your kind. I'm evil! Please have mercy on my soul." Stefan wept and bowed down to the bunny.

Suddenly the bunny started moving away. "Hey are you running away from me? Hey you are scared of me. Victory is mine!" and with that Stefan pounced on the bunny and digged his fangs deep into the bunny's body. Squish Squish! As the blood rolled down Stefan's lips, he savored the taste of the blood. All of a sudden he noticed someone staring at him."Who goes there? Oh no oh no!" and right there was his love, his soul mate- Cactus!

"Have you been watching me this whole time?" Stefan asked fearfully. When Cactus didn't answer, Stefan once more got down on his feet and cried.

"You must be disgusted with me. I told you I was an evil monster. But don't you see? I know vampires are not supposed to drink human blood like my hero Edward Cullen, but sadly as much as I try to emulate him, I can't...I can't..SPARKLE! But I do only eat bunnies like Edward. That's the least I can do. "

"Can you find it in your heart to still love me?" As Stefan wiped his tears away, he looked at Cactus and noticed there was not an ounce of disgust in her face. In fact she looked just like how she usually did- void of emotions. So without another word, Stefan leaned into Cactus and they shared their first kiss! SMOOCH!

Stefan felt like he was floating on the clouds deep into a world of world full of daisies and fairies. When he was done the kiss, he felt tiny cuts all over his lips."The cuts are all worth it babe. Cause I love you my lovely Cacty." That is when Stefan realized what he must do next."Oh my honey boo. I now feel comfortable to tell you something...to tell you what happened between me and maple tree."

Reminiscing in the Past

Stefan looked at the engagement ring he had picked out. "It's perfect. Perfect for my Maple tree," Stefan said lovingly.

It had been around 3 weeks that they were dating and he couldn't believe how deeply in love he had fallen for his Mapey Wapey. But something went wrong the last few days and Mapey had suddenly changed.

When Stefan wanted to kiss one of her leaves, she quickly blew her leaves away. Their conversations weren't the same either. Mapey always seemed so lost in thought, like she was thinking of someone else."Hmm...kind of the same look Elena gave me before she broke up..um I mean before I broke up with her," thought Stefan.

He knew it all began a few days ago after something about Mapey walking in on Damon in the shower. But Stefan couldn't figure out what was wrong. It was then he figured it out, as he and Mapey went out to the park.

Mapey at first wasn't in the mood, but as soon as she heard Damon and Elena were going to be there, she suddenly changed her mind. "Hmmm...she must want to be friends with Elena," thought Stefan. And as they sat on the bench and Mapey ignored him the whole night as she stared at Damon caressing Elena by the moonlight.

Then it hit him, "Aha, she wants us to get married!"

  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And so Stefan bought the most beautiful ring and he was going to propose to her that very night. He wanted to make reservations at a romantic restaurant, but Mapey insisted they go to this rock concert that she loved so dearly.

It was only when he reached the concert, that he noticed Damon and Elena were there too. "Hmm...thats weird. They must be stalking us. Hahahahaha, and I thought that was only my thing," snickered Stefan. But Mapey was already lost staring in the direction of Damon."Are you guys ready for some music," yelled the MC. As the crowd roared the MC announced, "Get ready for your favorite band with their number one single...this is The Smolderhotters!!!"

The crowd began to go wild as the awesome band sang, "Bite me Damon one more time." Stefan then thought of a perfect way to propose.

His favorite movie was '10 things i hate about you.' - "I will just re-enact that most romantic scene," Stefan thought excitedly. So he ran up on stage and stole the mike from the band and started singing.

"This is for you Mapey. Will you marry me?...You're just too good to be true. Can't take my eyes off you. You'd be like heaven to touch.I wanna hold you so much..."

The crowd started booing and throwing tomatoes at him.

"Wow they love me out there," Stefan thought. and he continued singing, "I need you baby if it's quite all right, I need you baby to warm the lonely night I love you baby.Trust in me when I say... "

He heard Elena say to Damon, "Stop him!" Damon then answered, "Oh I don't think so, and stop all this fun!?!"

"Of course Elena would want to stop me. She is so jealous," thought Stefan. It was finally Mapey who stopped him. She dragged Stefan away and broke his heart into pieces. She said she won't marry him and that she found someone else."Lovely love don't do this to me. Please," and those tears of Stefan came rolling down his face again.

But when Mapey just kept walking away, he yelled, "Mapey wait...I've decided to break up with you!" But Mapey was long gone."Oh poor Mapey. For me to break her heart like that. I just break all the women's hearts." And with that Stefan jerked back to reality and looked down and Cacty. Now this was his one true love!

TO BE CONTINUED.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Deleted scene

"Love Hurts"

Stefan knelt down in front of cactus. Reaching out his hand to gently stroke the side of this amazing cactus. "OW" He yelled. Pulling his hand away to revel blood starting to drip from his finger.

He put his head in his hands and started to cry. It was all so sudden and he felt at this moment he was so alone. Looking up from his hands he spoke softly

"I will touch you"

With that he pulled himself off the ground and ran into the kitchen. Pulling one of the draws out so violently he almost broke it in pieces. He pulled one of the oven mits out, gently putting it on his hand. Turning the oven mit around and smiling.Today would be the day, he would touch cactus and it wouldnt hurt.

He slowly moved toward cactus and kneeling down infront of where cactus was placed, he reached out the mitted hand and stroked the side of cactus.The song "Suddenly" came to his mind and with that he started whispering the words to cactus."Suddenly, life has new meaning to meeeeeeeeee"

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

All credit goes to DeanandDamon on the CW boards (Vampire Diaries) with the exception of the deleted scene, which was written by ShadowSouls on the CW boards (Vampire Diaries)