I do not own The Vampire Diaries
Spoilers to 5x01 ahead!
She unlocks her phone with a swift flick of her finger and grins at the voicemail from Tyler. Amongst the mayhem of her moving day she can rely on Tyler to cheer her up.
Caroline sighs softly with a small smile etched onto her face as she brings her phone to her ear, back propped up against the bed.
A small crackle welcomes her first, and then his voice comes through: clear - hesitant. "Hey, Caroline. I've put a lot of thought into this, and decided to defer school for now. This werewolf pack I'm helping... they need me. I know it's lame to do this over the phone, but I figure this way it's harder for you to kill me. I'm really, really sorry, Care... but this is important."
Caroline freezes, her phone still pressed against her ear, fingers clenching her phone just a little tighter before she drops it back into her lap, feeling her bottom lip begin to quiver. She takes a shaky breath before she curls onto her side and hugs her hands to her chest, tears pooling at her eyes as she replays Tyler's words in her head.
I'm really, really sorry, Care.. but this is important.
Wasn't she important? Wasn't their life important? Wasn't moving on from all the crap Mystic Falls brought important? No. Apparently not.
Caroline had expected him to defer school, just for a little while, that was Tyler - he was never really into anything but his sports and even then he skipped any opportunity if he found something better to do (like Vicky Donovan).
Caroline closes her eyes as the first tear drops down the side of her face, and a gentle whimper escapes her mouth. Tyler always chose someone else first over her. Sometimes it was Matt, then it was Klaus, then it was Hayley and his pack. Never her. Always the pack.
She understood the need to be with them, they were wolves, he was an Alpha, but she needed him to. Where was he when her father died? Far away with his pack. Where was he when she needed him? Running, hunting, fighting for his pack.
Caroline hears the shuffle of Elena's bed and she cringes inwardly knowing she's woken Elena with her pathetic crying - she knows Elena heard everything, she doesn't have to pretend, but when Elena asks if she's alright she simply sniffles.
"Yeah." She says. "Yeah I'm fine."
"I'm sorry, Caroline."
Caroline turns toward her slowly, she wants to smile but she doesn't. For a moment she just looks at Elena and speaks her mind. "I'm really glad that you're here."
Elena nods. "I'm really glad you're here too," she admits.
Caroline forces a small smile and turns back away from her best friend, curling into a ball as she glances at her phone. She sighs and switches it off, closing her eyes for the day ahead.
I'm really, really sorry, Care.
Caroline opens her eyes to the sound of familiar words. Shooting up, she looks around the room and only spots a sleeping Elena beside her. She rubs her eyes and strokes her fingers through her hair, catching a glimpse at her alarm clock. '4:34 AM'. Great.
Caroline throws the covers off of her, grabs her phone and slips out of the bedroom and out of the room. She finds herself walking into the cool air, the pads of her feet meeting the dampness of the pavement and her skin puckering as the wind kisses it.
She sits on the sidewalk and unlocks her phone, staring down at the screensaver of herself and Tyler. She pushes buttons and the next minute she has her phone pressed to her ear and a dialling tone echoing.
"Caroline," comes the relieved voice on the other end.
"I'm sorry if I woke you," she mumbles, kicking herself for the stupidity of her words. What was she supposed to say?
A laugh is her reply and she smiles, fingering a stone on the ground and rolling it between her finger and her thumb. "It's alright," he says. "I have all the time in the world for you."
Caroline finds her lip quivering at that.
"You're about the only one," she admits to him, and she hears mumbling on the other end before a door shuts and he is back with her. Full attention.
"Talk to me," he tells her, and she does. She explains her first day, she tells him of her roommate Megan, the vervain in the bottled water and the knowing look when herself and Elena were unable to enter the party. She tells him about Megan's "suicide" and she tells him about Tyler. She spends more time talking about her problem with Megan than she does Tyler. She simply says it how it is.
"He'd rather be with his pack."
And it's true. She's not bitter about it, it's just a simple fact and she's making him aware, also.
A small sigh brushes into her ear from the phone and Caroline finds herself searching the campus, students walking around here and there. She waits for him to start talking, but he doesn't and he's holding back. She throws the stone in her hand a short distant and brushes her feet to get the gravel off.
"Say it," she tells him, licking her bottom lip. "I know you want to say something."
He chuckles softly, and Caroline hears the ruffles of bed sheets and she imagines him sitting on the edge of his bed, looking out of the window - or maybe a painting, she muses - a grin on his face, dimples winking, and his full attention on Caroline. She sees silk satin sheets and loses herself in the picture before he clears his throat and she snaps out of it.
"His pack will always be of greater importance to him - because they are his family," he lets out a simple sigh and Caroline hears a few more ruffles. Perhaps he's resting on his bed now, back pressed to the headboard, ankles crossed. "He has no family, his father is dead, his mother - please, refrain from the comments - is also dead. He has no siblings and I assume uncles and aunts are either distant or diseased. His wolf pack will be the only ones who truly understand him, and the hybrids. He is not picking sides, he is simply picking to be with those who are in need of him, who have suffered the pain he has suffered. He is simply searching for a family, and he has found one."
Caroline sighs and brushes her fingertip against her ankle, resting her cheek on her shoulder. "He has a family here," she mumbles and she hears a sympathetic murmur.
"It's not the same, Caroline. It's a wolf thing. A pack will always have a stronger bond - stronger than love. Packs will stick together for a long time until they go off with their mates or the pack grows. He is the alpha. I daren't remind you of his previous indiscretions, but in this case I must for you to understand. He was not around when your father died, nor was he around when you were being forced to sit through ballroom dancing with me and my family, or gather information. The times you have needed him the most he has not been there. Not because he does not want to, but because you have your fellow vampire friends to protect you. Stefan has been the one to guide you into what you are, and the others are ones you will grow closer with, because you all understand what it means the be a vampire, to control your urges and your emotions. Vampires stick together or they stay alone. Wolves are bound by family; they serve to stay together, and they will die trying," he lets out an unnecessary breath before he continues. "He has not left you behind because he wants to, but it is all he knows as a wolf, Caroline. He has always been a wolf, and that pushes past his vampirism."
"I helped Tyler when he first started turning, the first few weeks. We ran from him when he chased Matt and I through the woods, and then he ran to my doorstep and curled up in a ball. I helped him, shouldn't that be enough to involve me with his pack-life?"
The voice sighs and Caroline frowns, the sound beginning to grate her nerves. "Caroline, you are not a wolf, and as much as he may have appreciated your dedication in helping him - you could not stop the breaking of his bones or the transition of his body. The other wolves can, and he can help them."
Caroline removes her cheek from her shoulder and looks up at the moon, it's full tonight. "It's a nice night tonight," she whispers and she can almost hear his smile. "I'm sorry I called you, I'm not sure why I did.. but I'm glad I did."
"Caroline, we are friends now, I assure you I am only a phone call away for you." She nods although he cannot see. "And yes," he says, movement echoing down the phone to Caroline's ear. "It's a beautiful night."
Caroline stares up at the stars and tilts her head in search of shapes. "Does it hurt to transition into a wolf?" She asks him quietly.
"I can't say I remember," he responds. "Caroline, your company is something I always welcome, but for now I must go. I have business to attend to."
Caroline bolts upright and holds her phone tighter to her ear. "Wait!" She calls into the phone, eyes darting around before she lowers her voice. "There's one more thing," she admits.
He pauses and allows her to go on, his silence an invitation.
"Would you have chosen your hybrids over me?"
"No," he tells her, the answer is instant and honest. "I abandoned my sister for the hybrids, only to gain myself a pack, to have protection for myself and my sister. Elijah. My family."
"What about Katherine?" She asks.
"I assume Katerina is as far away as she could possibly be, but if I encountered her, I would take her blood and create very few more hybrids, spread them around the world, have them engage in the war of power. But you? I chose to save you over my own sister, Caroline. I showed up at an awful dance to simply see you, may my excuse be my sister, it is always for you. It always was."
Caroline smiles down at her feet and stands slowly. "I guess that's good enough," she replies, flushed.
"Caroline I will let you into the words of my family. Always, and forever. I will not give up on you, different states or different worlds. I intend to be your last, don't I?"
Caroline laughs softly, and holds her hand up to her warm cheek. "Didn't you have business?" She asks. She does enjoy his compliments - he is the only person to have put her first, the choices he made, if involving her, would instantly make her the right answer. She would always be the one for him, and she knows that if the day ever comes that she could admit that to herself, she knows she would join him.
"I do" he replies, a smile evident in his voice. "Caroline," he stops and hesitates. "Be safe."
She nods and closes her eyes as he sighs softly. "Goodnight, Klaus."
"Goodnight, love."
Caroline pulls her phone away from her ear and pushes it in the pocket of her pyjamas. She smiles up at the sky and imagines blue-green eyes looking at the exact same thing. She brushes her behind and turns to step back inside, Tyler faintly on her mind, but the promise of Klaus' forever overcoming it.
Whatever he was up to, she hoped he was safe.
I'm sorry it's been so long, and I'm super sorry if this is just written awfully, I'm under a lot of stress with my job (I'm a carer), recently it's getting a bit much to deal with, and watching TVD 5x01 definitely relieved that! And did anyone see TO?! Oh my GOD! I, unfortunately, will forever ship Klaroline. Endgame all over, so..
Anyway, I'm sorry this wasn't actually that good and it was a little OOC, but you know. I tried for you (Sorry for potential mistakes). The next story is something I've been looking forward to writing. I have a lot of writers block and when I do write I feel like it's bloody awful. I have like... 20 ideas stored onto my phone. I'm not sure why I made Klaus a secret until the end because it was super obvious and... this is Klaroline. You can take the last line as her thinking of Tyler or Klaus.. I thought Klaus.
Review, please?