"Hey." His thumb grazed her cheek, his face close to hers. "You don't have to be. You didn't do this." That resonated, considering at one time she had done this, because it had been too devastating to live without him. At one time he'd wished she could go on without him, because she was consumed in him. But, now he thought they were consumed in one another. And they'd always be. Memories of burning her coffin, of Phoenix Stone and the hell that he'd been through that year stood on the sidelines ready to overwhelm him. Instead, he focused on Elena. He kept himself from kissing her, even lightly. This moment wasn't about that.

His arm snaked around, pulling her into a hug. He breathed her in, burying his face in the nape of her neck. She was here with him, and she believed him.

Everything would be okay.,