[Filling the Space is a flexible column where our writers could vent, deconstruct, and work their way around the emotions brought on by TV, films, books, music, and key moments in pop culture. This isn’t meant to be analytical, but instead, a means of bringing our voice into a space on the internet where there’s often too much going on—a way to step into the sphere.]
I’m too old to argue about Team Stefan or Team Damon. I don’t care about any of that. What I do care about is the fact that it’s been years, and Stefan and Elena’s first kiss is still one of the most honest and heartfelt moments on TV.
Paired with Sara Bareilles‘ “Gravity,” Stefan and Elena’s first kiss stands out for a myriad of reasons, but mostly because it’s sweet. It’s tender and vulnerable, and it makes their entire relationship feel that much more wholesome. It’s such a quintessential high school boy meets girl—they talk and realize that they have a lot in common despite the obvious things they don’t. I wouldn’t put this kiss in my top ten list of all-time favorites, but I’d certainly put it in my most memorable ones. There’s something so achingly realistic about how lovely it is, and first kisses like this that are softer tend to get pushed aside for the ones that are more charged.
And look, I get it. When all the tension boils over, and the couple finally has their first fiery kiss—I love it, too. A lot. Most of my favorites are actually those types of kisses. But these softer ones matter, too, and they especially matter when they feel right for both characters, which, in the case of The Vampire Diaries, they do.
It also helps that Nina Dobrev and Paul Wesley have great chemistry together because it makes every exchange between Stefan and Elena that much more wholesome. This is especially true at the beginning, before the lore gets deeper, because here, they just get to be teenagers. They get to be two people, taking a chance at something they both want. In many ways, I think the song also helps because Sara Bareilles’ lyrics in “Gravity” are some of the most achingly tender beats of longing to date. It’s still the type of song that makes me weep, so it’s hard not to appreciate the kiss when it’s playing in the background as Stefan and Elena have an honest moment of conversation to tell each other exactly what they’re feeling.
At the same time, softies deserve more love, too. These tender, sweet kisses are just as important, and with the way people tend to dismiss quiet moments, I was reminded of how deeply I adore this kiss because of its softness. Because of its vulnerability. Because even while they’re not the endgame, everything they share in this quiet moment in the dark holds something important in every frame.
First Featured Image Credit: ©The CW