"I'm amazed all your clothes can fit in that tiny car," Bonnie comments, leaning against the closed driver's side door.

"They don't," Elena replies. "Alaric is driving down with another load next week." When Bonnie's eyes go wide, Elena cracks a smile. "Bon, I'm kidding."

Bonnie rolls her eyes good-naturedly, pulling Elena toward her into a one-armed hug. Elena looks up at her, noticing the warmth and sadness behind the warmth in Bonnie's eyes. "Hey," she says softly, raising a hand to Bonnie's cheek. "It's going to be okay."

Bonnie nods, too quickly. Like she might be holding back tears. "I know. This is good! It's what we've always wanted."

"Getting out of Mystic Falls," Elena agrees. "Starting our lives."

"I just didn't think about—"

"Then don't," Elena interjects. "Don't think about it. For the next ten minutes, don't think at all." She smiles, a little sadly. "Just kiss me."

Bonnie does as she's told, leaning down to press her lips against Elena's. It's chaste, relatively speaking, but it sends a tingle down Elena's spine nonetheless.

They've officially been together for three weeks now, and while Elena knows that it took living through a war for their relationship to even happen in the first place, she can't help but wish they'd had more time as a couple before it came time to leave.

A low wolf-whistle invades the moment, and Elena turns her head to see Aubrey shooting her an apologetic look while lightly smacking Katherine's elbow. "Sorry, guys," Aubrey says as they walk up towards the cars. "Didn't mean to interrupt your goodbyes."

"You weren't," Elena tells her, shifting so that her back is to Bonnie's front, with Bonnie's arms wrapped around her midsection. "We're just getting a head-start."

"We can see," Katherine says with a smirk. "Where are Caroline and Rebekah?"

"Probably getting a head-start themselves," Aubrey remarks. She leans against Bonnie's car, sliding a hand around Katherine's hip.

"What do they have to say goodbye for?" Bonnie sighs, sounding vaguely put out. "They're going to be living in the same apartment, for crying out loud!"

"Feeling a little bitter?" Katherine asks, not unkindly.

"Not bitter," Bonnie replies. "Just..." She cuts herself off, shrugging against Elena's back.

"It's not like we'll be in different countries," Elena points out, twisting so she can see Bonnie's face. "ASU and Penn State are just four and a half hours from each other by plane."

"Four hours and thirty-five minutes," Bonnie corrects. "Thirty-three hours by car."

"2,173.2 miles."

Bonnie beams. "You're a freak, and I love you."

"Really, I just have Google Maps on my phone," Elena tells her. "But I'll take it."

Elena notices Aubrey and Katherine exchange a little look, but she doesn't really care; the two of them do more adorable couple-y things on the regular than they'd ever admit. Besides, she knows they feel for her and Bonnie. Aubrey and Katherine both got into Stanford, which means they get to head off to California together. And with Caroline at UCLA and Rebekah at USC, those two get to share an apartment.

That just leaves Elena and Bonnie, following dreams that unfortunately are taking them in opposite directions. Not to mention the fact that Elena will be far away from the rest of her friends and family, too.

It's good like Bonnie said. But it's also hard.

"Hey," Caroline calls as she and Rebekah walk up together hand in hand. "How are you guys doing?"

"Not as good as you, I'm guessing," Bonnie murmurs, nodding towards Caroline's smudged lipstick and Rebekah's rumpled top. "You two couldn't wait until you got to California?"

"It's a long drive," Caroline replies, nonchalantly.

"Not that long," Bonnie mutters.

"Well, my hands will be otherwise occupied," Rebekah says without an ounce of shame.

Bonnie rolls her eyes, but there's no real upset there. It's been a funny thing, having Rebekah around. Now that Rebekah and Caroline are a couple, Elena has realized that there's no use in distrusting Rebekah. She loves Caroline, more than anything, and so does Elena. Maybe that's all that really matters, in the end.

"Did you guys already say goodbye to your parents?" Caroline asks the group.

"Oh yeah," Aubrey replies. "Katherine and I have, like, ten muffin baskets in our car."

"Alaric loaded me with whatever novel equivalent of ten muffin baskets is," Elena says.

"My mom cried," Caroline reveals. "Even though she's coming out in a few weeks to help get us settled"

"Gram didn't cry," Bonnie tells them.

"Bon," Elena says softly.

"It's fine," Bonnie dismisses. "She's coming to Pennsylvania right after school starts. I'm sure she'll treat me to an expensive lunch while subtly interrogating me about my professors."

"It's almost noon," Katherine reports. "We've got to hit the road."

"Me too," Elena realizes. "These clothes aren't going to drive themselves to Arizona."

Bonnie steps forward, holding Elena's hand tightly. Her eyes are starting to look a little wet. Wordlessly, the rest of the group inches in too, until they're assembled in a sort of misshaped semi-circle.

Elena feels her heart pounding a little faster. This is it. They're actually going to leave.

"I never thought we'd get here," she admits. "I wanted it so badly, but I never thought the day would come when we would get to drive away from this place.

Rebekah smiles, running her fingers along Caroline's arm. "There are a lot of things I never thought I'd get to. But here we are. We all are."

Caroline kisses her cheek, nodding in agreement.

Bonnie looks at each of their faces, breathing in shakily. "How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard?"

"What brilliant scholar said that?" Aubrey asks.

"Winnie the Pooh," Bonnie admits with a watery laugh. It's echoed by the rest of them, all of them laughing in that small, sad way that one does when they know an ending is near.

Elena exchanges hugs with each of her friends, even briefly wrapping her arms around Rebekah. Then Aubrey and Katherine head back to Katherine's house, where their car is parked, while Caroline and Rebekah make their way back to Rebekah's.

Finally, it's just Bonnie and Elena again. They hold each other for as long as possible until it's time for Elena to get in her car.

"You've got snacks for the road?" Bonnie asks, leaning down to Elena's open window.

"Check."

"And you know how to change a tire?"

"Bon."

"Well?" Bonnie presses. "Do you?"

"I do," Elena promises. "And I have the piece of paper you gave me with names of possible hotels for tonight."

"I checked, and none of them have had any outbreaks of bed bugs in the last eighteen months," Bonnie assures her. "In case you were concerned."

"I wasn't," Elena says. "But I love you for checking."

Bonnie's brow relaxes, her eyes momentarily looking more fond than concerned."I love you too." She clears her throat. "And you've got maps? Real paper ones in case you lose cell service?"

Elena looks up at her, feeling so much that her heart could burst. Maybe Mystic Falls won't be home anymore, but Bonnie always will be. That won't change, even when they're apart.

"Yeah," Elena replies. "But I think I know exactly where I'm going."