Caroline couldn't even step through her front door.
She stood on her porch, key in hand, staring into her house. Her eyes were dry, but only because she had spent the last several hours releasing all of her tears.
"Caroline?" Stefan stood behind her, his voice soft and full of concern.
They had driven from the hospital after Liz' body was taken to the morgue.
"I- I can't. I just..." Caroline turned away from the door towards Stefan but didn't meet his eyes. She kept her gaze the keys in her hands.
Stefan stepped towards her. "You don't have to. Come on." He reached out to put his hand on her arm and lead her back to the car.
"I should get some things..." She turned back towards the door, then back to Stefan. "Stefan?" She asked weakly.
Wordlessly, Stefan gently pulled her keys out of her hand and used them to open the door to Caroline's house.
He stepped inside and closed the door behind him softly.
He used his vamp speed to quickly put a bag together for Caroline. He grabbed enough clothes for a few days and some toiletries from the bathroom. On his way out he noticed a picture of Caroline and her mom on the wall.
Stefan stood there, staring at the little girl on her pink bicycle smiling proudly while her mother beamed down at her. He took the picture from the wall and placed it in the bag.
Stefan walked outside and locked the door behind him.
He found Caroline waiting in her car, head leaning against the window, staring out into the night. Her face was broken in despair, her eyes devoid of all light. Stefan wanted nothing more than to take away all her pain, but he knew what it was like to lose a mother. Caroline would be depressed no matter what he said to her, no matter what he did. He would just have to be there to support her, in what ever she needed.
He placed her bag in the trunk and got into the drivers side of the car.
"Thank you." Caroline's voice was barely a whisper. She didn't look at him, her eyes held steady on the night's sky.
"Of course." Stefan tried to smile but knew it was useless. She wasn't going to look over at him. He started the car and began the drive back to the Salvatore house.
As they pulled away from her neighborhood, Caroline let out a soft whimper that she tried to conceal by turning her face even farther from Stefan.
Stefan reached out and put his hand over Caroline's, stroking the back with his thumb. Caroline squeezed his in return.
He held her hand the entire drive home.
When they got to the Salvatore house, Stefan looked over to Caroline to find that she had fallen asleep. She looked so unlike the woman he had seen just minutes ago at her house. Her face had a peaceful glow that drew his hand to her, pulling her hair back so he could see her better.
Liz's words rang in his head.
She is going to need you.
Of course Stefan knew that, and of course he wanted nothing more than to spend every minute he could helping Caroline get through this. Not because her mother asked him to, but because he cared so deeply for her.
"Caroline?" Stefan barely whispered, hoping it wouldn't wake her.
Her eyebrows raised slightly but she remained still.
Stefan couldn't suppress a smile as he stared over at the beautiful blonde next to him. He felt butterflies as he got out of the car and walked over to the passenger side. He crouched down and carefully lifted Caroline out of the car. He left the car door open, knowing he would have to come back out to get her bag.
He managed to open the front door and walked into his house.
Elena walked down the stairs as he approached them. Her face fell slightly when she saw Stefan carrying Caroline into the house.
"Hey, how is she?" she whispered, her voice tense but concerned.
Stefan looked down at Caroline. "She's...you know." He said softly, not taking his eyes off of her.
"Im going to put her into the room next to mine, can you go grab her bag and shut the car door?"
"Sure, do you have the keys?"
"yeah, hold on."
Stefan artfully shifted Caroline's weight into one of his arms so he would have easy access to his front pocket to grab the keys.
After handing them to Elena he walked up the stairs and into the room next to his. Stefan carefully laid Caroline down onto the bed, making sure she was in a comfortable position.
Stefan was just going to put her down and get the bag from Elena to set up her toiletries in the bathroom, but he couldn't look away from Carolines sleeping face.
He was still reeling from the kiss they shared only hours before and couldn't help but think about it everytime he looked at her.
What did it mean? She's my best friend, did I make a mistake?
The kiss itself was on a level on its own. Absolute perfection, something that surprised Stefan and confused him even more.
Will she regret it? Do I regret it?
Stefan shook his head, No. He didn't regret it. He didn't know what it meant for them and their future, but he knew he would never take back that kiss.
A soft smile formed over Stefan's lips as he thought of it again.
Elena walked in then, Caroline's bag on her shoulder.
"Stefan, I'm sure you'd like to get some sleep. Ill take care of her." Elena put the bag on the chair in the corner and walked over to him.
Stefan didn't move. He knew he should probably let Elena take care of Caroline. He was unsure where they stood and didn't want to push himself into a situation that would be unfair to Caroline.
"Uh-" He was about to say okay when Caroline's voice rang in his ears.
"Stefan." She still laid in the position he had set her down in. Her tone was soft and when he looked down into her eyes, he knew immediately what she wanted.
"No, Elena. Its okay. Ill stay with her."
Elena looked at Caroline, then back to Stefan.
"Alright," her eyebrows rose a good bit when she let out a sigh. "Caroline, i'm just down the hall if you need me."
Caroline just nodded slightly and turned her gaze down to the floor.
Elena walked out of the room leaving the door open.
Stefan looked back down at Caroline.
"Can I get you anything?" He racked his brain to remember the last time he saw her eat.
She shook her head so softly, Stefan almost missed it.
She looked up at him and he knew exactly what she wanted.
Stefan crossed the room quickly, shut the door, and turned off the lights.
He went over to the bed, taking off his shoes as he walked. He removed Caroline's shoes too before climbing into the bed next to her. She slide her body over enough for him to get in and Stefan wrapped her up in his arms. Her head laid on his chest, her hand rested below his ribcage.
Being in bed with her, wrapped up in her, Stefan felt more confused than ever. He was trying to squash the rising passion he felt in his chest, something that was definitely uncalled for in their current situation.
He heard Caroline's breathing even out once more and knew she had fallen back asleep.
Stefan stroked Caroline's arm with his fingertips as he fell asleep, convincing himself he was soothing her, but deep down he knew he just wanted to feel as much as her as he could.