Hey everyone!

I...we have all been going through some major Haylijah withdrawals as of late and my muse isn't very happy about it, which is surprisingly a good thing because it's driving her to let me write our way through this awful withdrawal.

I've had many different directions for this one idea for a while now but I've finally decided on one and am sticking to it. This is for all of you who wish that the storyline on the show was going differently and that we were getting many more Haylijah scenes and mentions. I really do hope that you will all enjoy this!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything associated with The Originals...I just like to play around with the characters. I only own the plot.

Sometimes need outweighs everything else. Hayley kept telling herself she was doing the right thing, and sometimes she believed it. But there was always something that would remind her of what she was giving up and bring her one step closer to her breaking point. Her breaking point was closer than she thought. And need would, in fact, prove to outweigh everything else.

Chapter 1 - Buttons and Tantrums

It hurt. It physically and emotionally hurt. The emotional and physical pain Hayley was feeling damn near rivaled how she'd felt when she'd first come to after being turned into a hybrid and felt the need to find her baby, to find Hope. The ironic thing about it was that the pain she was feeling now was because of Hope. Everything she was doing now was to make New Orleans a safer place for Hope so that she could come back and live in peace, and ironically that was the cause of her current emotional and physical pain. Being a mother was even harder than she thought it'd be, not that it should be surprising since she wasn't just any ordinary mother. But, still. Why couldn't it be easier? Oh, yeah, that's right...because nothing about her life was easy, it never had been and never would be.

Hayley stared at herself in the mirror, taking in the sight of the cringe worthy look on her face as well as her tear and make-up stained cheeks and her disheveled hair. The same hair she'd been literally trying to rip out of her head only moments before when she'd been in the midst of throwing a tantrum that a little kid who got their favorite toy taken away would have thrown. Well, minus the clothes and broken furniture laying haphazardly all over the room behind her. No kid could ever do that much damage, not that they'd even think of it...not that anything they went through would be any reason to tear up an entire room in blind rage and pain.

It was all becoming too damn much for her to handle. She wanted nothing more than to be able to lead a normal life, if she had taken Esther's offer before she very well could have. But, she couldn't do that to Hope. It would have been selfish and awful of her to have allowed herself a normal life and to leave Hope behind. Hayley knew how it felt to be abandoned and she'd be damned if she'd ever knowingly and purposely abandon her own child, her one and only child. She wanted better for Hope...not worse, not the same...better. Even if that meant giving up all chances at her own true happiness.

As awful as it sounded, Hope could only make her but so happy. Hayley hated the thought of it but it was the truth. When it came down to it, all everyone wanted was to be loved and to have someone to love. Hayley wasn't any different, even despite the less than desired circumstances. Hayley had someone to love, she had Hope...she also had him, even though it could never be in the way that she loved Hope because in order to love him like that she would have to be selfish and put herself first. Hayley even had someone to love her, two someone's actually...Elijah and Jackson. But, one of the two didn't count because she'd never be able to love him back. Yes, she cared about Jackson, but she didn't love him and she wouldn't...ever. She already loved one of them and it was the former.

She had to put Hope first, though, and that meant giving up the someone she loved and settling for the someone who loved her but that she'd only ever care for back. Hayley would be happy once she had Hope back for good, but there would always be something missing...a void of happiness that could never be filled by anyone other than him. That void being filled wouldn't, couldn't happen. Not now. Hope was the number one priority, Hayley was now second priority and always would be.

Hayley's tears began sliding freely down her face again. She felt like she was being a bad mother for even thinking about it, but if she could she'd put an end to everything. The ritual wouldn't happen and Hayley would selfishly choose to be with the one she loved over the one she had to settle for. But, she couldn't. It wouldn't be right to do that. The way things were happening now was what was right. But, why did the right thing have to feel so wrong?

"It's not fair, damn it!" Hayley hissed through clenched teeth, her tears stinging her eyes as she grabbed the mirror from the wall and turned quickly to throw it across the room where it landed somewhere along the floor with the rest of the rooms now damaged contents.

Why couldn't she have both of them? Why couldn't she have both Hope and Elijah? The facts were clear to anyone who cared to notice them, Hayley needed Hope...but, she needed Elijah just as much.

Hayley surveyed what had minutes before looked like her bedroom, but now looked like the leftover mess of a really bad earthquake. After staring at the damage for a while, she deduced that it was all Klaus' fault. Ten minutes before now, Hayley had been as fine as she could have been at that moment in time. She'd once again convinced herself that she was doing the right thing and she was content with what she was doing. But, then she'd ran into him in the courtyard when she'd returned to the quarter from the bayou and her contentment didn't last much longer after that. Well, actually, she'd sought him out so maybe it was partially her fault...but mainly his. Klaus knew exactly what to do and what to say to push her buttons, and he was angry at her so he didn't hesitate to push those buttons.

The argument that they had, or lack thereof since Klaus had pushed her buttons before they could really get into it, was still fresh in her mind given the fact that it had happened only about ten minutes before. The events after the argument of sorts were still very clear in her mind as well...

After making sure that Jackson was able to handle himself after the confrontation with Klaus, Hayley made her way to the quarter to find Klaus. She didn't have to look for long, she found him in the courtyard drinking a bottle of whiskey.

"What the hell, Klaus?" she hissed as she stormed over to him, knocking the cup he was holding from his hands.

"Well, hello to you to," Klaus smirked up at her, acting as if nothing was out of the normal and managing to anger Hayley even more.

Hayley glared at him. "Don't you dare act like everything's all fine and dandy!"

Klaus ignored her, instead asking, "Shouldn't you be out at the bayou tending to your fiancés wounds?"

Hayley cringed at his use of the "F" word, it was true but the word just didn't sit well with her. She knew why it didn't, but she couldn't bring herself to think of the reason because if she did things would go downhill even more than they already were. However, despite Hayley not wanting to go there, that's exactly where Klaus wanted to go and when he wanted something...nine times out of ten, he got it.

She scowled at Klaus, crossing her arms over her chest. "Don't even go there, Klaus!" Hayley warned him.

"Still protective of him, I see." Klaus chuckled. "You just keep twisting the knife deeper and deeper." He shook his head and tsked.

Hayley narrowed her eyes at him. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"I talked to Elijah not that long ago," he told her.

Hayley felt a small wave of pain shoot from her stomach to her heart upon hearing his name. "What does that have to do with anything?" she asked as nonchalantly as she could, which didn't come out very well.

"I could practically sense the jealously and pain emanating from him over the phone when I informed him of how protective you were of Jackson during our confrontation earlier," Klaus answered, that smirk he wore so well still very evident on his face.

Hayley felt the wave of pain shoot through her again. The thought of how Elijah must have felt nearly made her knees buckle out from underneath her. She couldn't bare to see or hear of him being in pain. Especially not with her as the cause.

"I know you're angry at me right now, but that was uncalled for," Hayley yelled angrily, trying to hide the evidence in her tone that he had gotten to her...not that she needed to hide it, Klaus knew very well that Elijah was one of Hayley's biggest buttons and he'd pushed it.

"Too late now," he replied, shrugging his shoulders as he leaned over to pick the cup from earlier up off of the floor and proceeded to pour himself a new one. "I'm sure Elijah will manage to overcome it, you're not the first love he's lost..." Klaus paused and grinned mischievously up at Hayley.

Hayley didn't like that look and she was not at all wanting to hear what came next out of Klaus's mouth.

Klaus finished his thought slowly, making sure that Hayley heard every word very clearly, "And you certainly won't be the last."

Hayley's button had not only been pushed now, a heavy cube of ice had been dropped on top of it so it would stay pushed for as long as it took for it to melt. Hayley felt her entire body begin to shake in a fit of rage. She had no control over herself now as her tantrum started, all the built up anger and pain and all of her other emotions poured out into her actions. She was like a tornado going through the courtyard as she screamed bloody murder and grabbed tables and chairs and anything she could get a hold of and threw them across the room, against walls, etc. She didn't pay any attention to Klaus during her outburst, but she was sure that he had sat there the entire time wearing that damn smirk on his face.

After Hayley was finished breaking every piece of furniture she could get her hands on, she still had some anger and pain and other emotions left behind begging to be let out, which is what led her to her room and eventually led to her anger and pain turning into tears and depression. After most of her furniture had met a similar fate as the furniture from downstairs, Hayley had surveyed the damage and only then had she realize that in her blind rage she'd emptied out her entire closet as well. It didn't seem like much and wouldn't have caught her attention if only a certain article of clothing hadn't caught her eye.

In the midst of a pile of her clothes laid one of Elijah's suit jackets, more specifically...it was the jacket that Elijah had given her when they'd first met. Hayley vamp sped over to it, human speed would've been enough since she was enclosed in her room, but she wanted...no she needed the jacket as quickly as she could get it. Hayley leaned over and picked the jacket up, bringing it to her nose...his scent was still all over it, clear as day, even after more than a year had passed. Hayley had never given it back to him, nor did she have any plans to in the near future.

Hayley had kept it hidden in the back of her closet since then, it had become a comfort to her rather quickly. She had taken it out every once in a while when she needed to feel safe and secure. The closer she and Elijah had gotten, though, the less she needed it and before long she'd forgotten she had it. If only she had remembered it had been in there sooner, it would have helped her a lot during the long distances she and Elijah had gone through as of late. She missed him so damn much...so damn much that it hurt, physically and emotionally.

Hayley slipped into the jacket and wrapped it around herself as if it were a warm cocoon, which to her it was. It was her go to comfort object, it was similar to a child's blankie. Instead of a blankie, she had one of Elijah's suit jackets...and knowing that was enough to make her smile for the first time in what seemed like an eternity. It wasn't Elijah himself, but it was as close as she was going to get anytime soon. Or was it?

"Hayley!" a familiar voice called out all of a sudden, breaking her away from her memories.

Hayley shook her head to bring herself back to reality and turned to the door where the voice came from. Her eyes widened slightly. "Jackson, what are you doing here?" she asked, curiously. "You should be at the bayou healing," she told him, trying to hide the slight annoyance in her voice.

She just wanted to be alone right now. He didn't know that, but she didn't think that she would have to worry about him showing up considering the circumstances surrounding the day.

"You seemed angry when you left," Jackson answered. "I wanted to make sure that you didn't do anything you'd regret." He looked around the room, a look of concern and surprise on his face. "What happened...you did all of this?" he asked, his eyes meeting hers.

Hayley nodded her head.

"And downstairs?" he wondered out loud.

Hayley nodded her head again.

Jackson's attention suddenly switched from her face to lower. He frowned as he took in what she was wearing. "Is that his jacket?" he growled out his question, already knowing the answer.

Hayley felt the need to frown and scold him for his reaction, but his question only reminded her of something that she'd thought of while she'd been reminiscing about what had happened not that long ago. She had a bigger need to do something else, and Jackson wasn't a part of that need.

"Go lay down somewhere and let yourself heal faster, Jackson," Hayley told him, reaching into her front jean pocket for her keys. "I have somewhere that I need to go."

Jackson frowned. "You're going to see him, aren't you?" he asked, a hint of jealously in his tone.

Hayley ignored him and spoke again, "Go lay down, Jackson."

She walked past him without another word and left the room, leaving a very jealous and physically hurt Jackson in her wake.

There were more important things for her to do than to get into a fight with him about Elijah right now...like going to see Elijah.

Alright, so there you all have it! Let me know what you thought. Review, please?!

I know that this chapter only had a few mentions of Elijah in it, but I promise you that there will be another chapter to this and he will definitely be in it so be on the look out for it in the next few days or so.

Until next time!