AN : I don't believe in Steroline romance, but I don't own TVD. And I often tend to forget this series is drama, not adventure. They will then go for the drama stuff, brushing with soap at some points, and not for epic, heroic feats, favouring dramatizing over sucking it up and doing things for a change. Enough ranting in my part. To the drabble...Reviews are welcome.
THE END OF THE AFFAIR
« What is she doing here ? » Hayley seethed.
Klaus followed her eyes and his heart stopped. Caroline was downstairs, dancing her way across the dancefloor. He grinned. Hayley stopped him.
« No way. You're still hoping ?
-Hayley. You may have binding ties. But she has me. »
Hayley stepped back, smirking. He turned his eyes to the dancefloor and his blood ran cold. Marcel was dancing with her. She was measuring him. Marcel was flirting. Klaus gripped the banister.
« You have it bad, Niklaus. » Hayley smirked.
-Hayley.
-She'll never give you the time of day, you know that, right ? »
Caroline downstairs smiled and shook her head. Klaus smiled as Marcel backed down.
« What the hell, Hayley whispered.
Klaus smiled.
« Caroline has impeccable taste. »
Hayley huffed and turned around, walking away. Klaus froze. He knew the man now dancing with her. It was not Marcel. But Stefan Salvatore. They were dancing together as long-time friends, but something was off. Then, he caught it. Her smile. The one she had been addressing to Tyler, and it was aimed at Stefan. In an even more intimate and tender way, if that was possible. She had fallen in love with Stefan. An urge to kill someone – most probably a Salvatore brother – rose inside him.
« Hello, mate.
-Niklaus. »
They both turned around to face him.
« I guess congratulations are in order, Caroline said tentatively.
-Yeah, congratulations, Klaus. You do know how to make the impossible happen. »
They were grinning. He realized they were genuinely happy for him. How had that happened ? He couldn't help grinning back.
« Magic already worked in weirder ways. »
Caroline and Stefan shared an amused glance. They were definitely lovers. The anger and jealousy made the connection bittersweet.
« What brings you here in New Orleans ?
-We wanted to see you. Know how you're dealing with all of this.
-That's amazing, by the way, Caroline chimed in. Looks like you're a pretty good king.
-Can't wait to see baby Mikaelsen, Stefan continued.
The bittersweet feeling wouldn't go away.
« We're going back to Atlanta tomorrow. But the moment your child's born, we want to know, alright ? » Caroline pressed on.
He was looking for a way to define the two people in front of him. Friends. They were the perfect definition of it.
XXX
Later, in the night, as the party started to empty, Elijah found him on their balcony.
« Everything's alright, brother ?
-I saw Stefan and Caroline tonight.
-You seemed to have a good time, Niklaus. For a change. »
Klaus turned to him.
« She loves him, Elijah. And he's in love with her. »
Elijah looked at him cautiously.
« I'm not losing them. They're going to be back. »
Elijah couldn't help it. A warm grin broke on his lips.
« See, brother ? I told you you wouldn't be alone. »
Niklaus turned to his brother.
Elijah took his younger brother in, the unshed tears of emotion in his eyes and a sudden wave of warmth had him engulf him in a bear hug. Niklaus had a heart again. It had been a thousand years but it had been worth it.
AN : God, the siblings scenes in 4x20. The pregnancy storyline is lame, but all the rest is gold. Absolute gold.
In any case, I remember saying something similar when the cure appeared. We got used to it, didn't we ?