Photo Credit: The Vampire Diaries / The CW

Spoiler Alert: Although the following post is a speculative one based on recent clues from the show’s cast and crew, please do not read any further if you want to keep Season 4 of The Vampire Diaries a complete surprise!

We recently brought you all news that along with a great deal of pain, Elena Gilbert will be enjoying some pleasure as well. According to the show’s creative team, Mystic Falls’ prettiest doppelganger will experience her “first” sexual awakening as a fresh vamp sooner rather than later. The only detail the showrunners have kept mum about though is exactly who Miss Gilbert will be shacking up with in The Vampire Diaries Season 4. So will be the lucky fellow?

While it’s hard to picture an individual as loyal and level-headed as Elena choosing someone other than her boo from the start, Stefan Salvatore, viewers have been flirting with the notion of Matt Donovan and Elijah Mikaelsen as her potential lover. However, recent hints from executive producer Julie Plec give us reason to believe that the stud in question may actually be Damon. Check out juicy details Julie shared with Entertainment Weekly:

According to Plec, Elena will feel torn between each brother’s perspective and that will impact her relationships with each of them. Though the direction of those relationships remains to be seen, Plec made it clear that the love triangle is beginning a new chapter. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean Elena’s going to ditch Stefan — but she obviously still has some unfinished business with Damon. By the fourth episode, expect to see the two drawn together in a moment sure to spark a whole lot of fan fodder. “There’s a really interesting moment between Damon and Elena where she’s acting a little bit out of character and they both get caught up in a moment,” teases Plec.

It’s been one of the hottest topics of discussion ever since viewers discovered that Elena met Damon before she ever laid eyes on Stefan’s hot back in the pilot episode: Will Elena remember every moment that Damon had compelled her to forget, or will she act indifferent for the sake of her relationship with Stefan? The few times that Damon chose to erase her memory, he had not only pinpointed her thirst for passion and adventure, but also confessed that he loved her purely madly deeply. Taking this recent storyline development — namely that Elena will be acting out of character — into account has us thinking that perhaps Elena will finally dare to push the limits with the older Salvatore brother. Plus, the two of them have plenty of chemistry and might begin again right where they left off at the motel (before Jeremy so rudely interrupted).

However, despite the potential good news for Delena shippers, don’t expect Damon to leap at Elena’s every beck and call this season. He’s no longer going to be clinging to her like a wet rag, batting his long lashes every time she turns the corner, or worshiping the very ground she walks on. In fact, this time around, he’s going to be the chasee, NOT the chaser:

Elena will remember the moments and confessions that Damon compelled her to forget and it will confirm that she wasn’t wrong in believing there was good in him. Though don’t expect a recently rejected Damon to be receptive to her realizations. “I think for him it’s just like, ‘Yep, well, that’s in the past. That was then, this is now. You made your choice,’” said Plec. “Damon’s not going to be sitting around moping, that’s for sure. He’s going to have a little bit of a ‘tude probably.”

So what do you think — will Damon be the lucky guy who conquers Elena’s heart (and sweet kisses) in The Vampire Diaries Season 4? Or do you feel that recent spoiler is simply nothing more than a red herring? Drop us a note in the comments!