While many people will have a tough time dealing with the loss of Elena in Season 7 of "The Vampire Diaries," it looks like the tragedy will be the hardest for Bonnie as she struggles with her own sense of guilt.

During the Season 6 finale, fans said goodbye to Nina Dobrev's character, Elena, who was put under a spell that will keep her in a coma-like state for as long as Bonnie is alive. As a result, she will likely remain locked in a coffin for the next 60 to 70 years.

Although it's clear that Elena's absence is bound to have a devastating effect on her longtime boyfriend Damon, executive producer Julie Plec revealed that Bonnie will also have a tough time adjusting to life without Elena.

"She has survivor's remorse," Plec told Entertainment Weekly about Kat Graham's character. "But she doesn't want to be punished for it, either, so she's trying to take a stand against anybody that would make her feel bad that she survived."

During an exclusive interview with melty, series star Ian Somerhalder, who plays Damon, also opened up about how Mystic Falls will change now that the show is missing its leading lady.

"The way it was done was actually incredible, because it allows people to know that she's still there ... she's not dead," he said. "In seventy years or however long Bonnie lives, Elena will resurface at some point, although we'll be very old when that happens."

He added, "We're actually very excited about telling this story. Mystic Falls without Elena Gilbert is going to be very different. We want to go back to that Season 1 and Season 2 of storytelling... I think that the last scene in the last episode that you see is truly a depiction of what this next season's going to be."

The Season 7 premiere of "The Vampire Diaries" will air on Thursday, Oct. 8 at 8 p.m. EDT on The CW.