Yes, I posted something after years of not posting anything that I have written. I found for a while I couldn't finish anything, but finally I have!
Thank you Carla (mistkitt) and all my other friends for reading, proofreading and opinions! You have been every supportive. Now, dedicated to all those awesome Klaroline fans out there, here is something that has been brewing for a while.
Currently, Caroline Forbes was visiting a quaint coffee shop that she had passed by everyday on her way to work. Every time she had passed the coffee shop with windows filled with baked delicacies that had caught her eye, she had promised herself that one day she would make time to stop by the shop. Finally, just a few days ago she decided to sit down at a chair just for a few minutes and enjoy the bright days of the late summer before heading on.
Now on August 21st, as she finally sat enjoying a simple cup of coffee beneath a light blue awning, under the sun on that fine Saturday morning, a little boy decided to introduce himself. However, this boy who stood before her was not alive. No, he was most certainly a ghost.
He looked like an ordinary little boy at seven or so years of age. Not American, judging by his accent, but most certainly he looked alive, that is if anyone could see him besides Caroline. However, Caroline was one of the few out there who could see ghosts, which didn't alarm her because she possessed this gift since she was a little girl.
She could tell this boy was a ghost from his presence. There was something about him as she observed this boy that gave off a presence that humans did not. It made goosebumps form on her back, put her mind on high alert, and for some reason the back of her mind just screamed ghost.
"My name is Henrik."
A moment passed and a smile graced her lips.
"Caroline," she replied. A small smile grew on Henrik's face as she confirmed that she could actually see him.
Caroline smiled back at him, trying to figure out what this boy wanted. It was not odd for a ghost to seek her out. She was used to it, because they often had unfinished business and they needed someone of the living to help them. Caroline wasn't bothered by this. Sure there were often times where her life did not need to be filled with ghosts and she could focus on her own problems, but often she was glad she could help. Especially if it was a child. Children often became evil things after years of isolation.
Henrik leaned closer, his voice dropped to almost a whisper as if they were sharing secrets. "Can you help me? I need to give something to my brother!" he asked, his small voice going up in pitch, which Caroline noted could be him being nervous.
She smiled at his antics and he beamed back at her when she leaned forward across the tale and whispered back, "I'll do what I can."
She must have looked crazy since people only saw her leaning over her table and whispering to thin air, but she had learned not to care what people thought. Over the years you just stop caring about people's odd looks. Almost.
Her words were truthful. This was her life practically: helping the dead move on.
"My brother goes here every morning", Henrik began to explain, "He's right behind you."
Caroline went to sneak a peek at this mysterious brother but was interrupted by Henrik.
"No! Don't look! He can't know yet!"
She almost laughed at the childish gesture, but she managed a semi-straight face. "Okay, you can turn around slowly," he conceded. However, instead of slowly she whipped herself around.
She barely heard Henrik's exclamation of "Hey" in the background as her eyes landed on a very handsome man. His eyes were looking down at what seemed to be a sketchpad, and his face was set in deep concentration. Short curly blonde hair swept around his head and she could tell that he had a bit of scruff which somehow complimented his face of sharp angles and lines.
Just as she was about to turn around he glanced up at her and their eyes met. She stared into the most intense sky blue eyes she had ever seen. However, the smirk that began to spread across his face ruined the moment. Dimples appeared, and Caroline cursed Henrik for having an attractive older brother.
She immediately turned around and faced Henrik. "Your brother," she began quietly, suddenly embarrassed to be talking to what other people would see as an empty space.
No. Stop. You aren't like that anymore. She chastised herself.
"Is an arse," Henrik finished her sentence, though she wasn't going to say that, "Yeah, I know. He can be like that." Wasn't this kid seven?
"What do you need," she asked again, trying to distract herself from the stare that she knew Henrik's older brother was probably giving her.
"My brother is an artist, and for the last few days he's been drawing you every time you sit down at a table. Yesterday I realized you could see people like me! So I realized I can give Nik my present!" he explained.
Caroline was a bit taken aback by this new information. His older brother, Nik, had been drawing her? Should she feel flattered? No one has ever drawn her before.
She focused back on the situation, "So what shall I be telling Nik?" she asked, the boy smiled at her in delight, but then a slight frown appeared on his face.
"You have to call him Klaus, he doesn't like it when people call him Nik, only my sister and I call him Nik," the boy explained.
Caroline was very confused, Klaus had some odd nicknames.
Henrik noticed her confusion and explained, "His real name is Niklaus, which my mom and my other brother call him. I know we have weird names, but it's my family's thing."
Caroline nodded, finally understanding. Her mouth twitched upwards at Henrik mentioning it as a family "thing", it was kind of sweet.
"Understood," she said, "So what shall I be telling him?"
Henrik smile turned into a conspiratorial look, and he leaned forward and explained.
Caroline took a deep breath as she stared at Henrik across the wrought iron table. She stood from her chair and turned around to face Henrik's older brother, Klaus. It wasn't foreign to Caroline when it came to talking to strangers, especially to them about the dead that seemed to haunt them. However, she still feared the outlash; you may never know what people will do to others when they don't understand.
She walked up to his table and he glanced up at the sound of her footsteps approaching. She felt Henrik's presence behind her, as if he were hiding behind her. Klaus saw her and gave her the same smirk as before and suddenly she felt a little more confident. That she needed to prove she couldn't be seduced by him. Except when she actually reached the table she wasn't sure how to start.
However, she didn't have to worry, "How can I help you, sweetheart?" Of course he has an English accent, she thought.
His smirk grew when he noticed her surprise at his accent. His little brother had one, of course he would have one.
She watched his eyes observe her. It was not the usual way a guy would normally check her out, instead it was as if he were determining whether she was a predator or prey.
Immediately she scoffed at him and his stare. She told herself not to get distracted by his eyes. She decided to rip the bandaid off quick.
She took a deep breath and said, "Check under the fountain, near the cobblestone path. You'll find the necklace and some other things there." It sounded rehearsed, as if she had been repeating it to herself.
She noticed his immediate change, and the visage he had put up flashed away. He sat up straight, his smirk gone and his blue eyes darkening. Caroline took a shaking breath at his reaction. Henrik stood next to Caroline, gripping her leg. If only she could feel it.
"Nik! Listen to her!" Henrik yelled at his brother.
"Who told you to say that?" Klaus asked furiously. Caroline sucked in a quick breath at his ferocity, and she tried to compose herself. She had to do this till the end.
"Henrik," she breathed, Klaus stood up immediately, the sudden motion causing Caroline to flinch back. For a moment she feared he might do something drastic, but then he gathered his things, and began to turn away.
Henrik invaded Caroline's bewilderment, "You need to stop him! Make sure he understands!"
She noticed Henrik running up to Klaus's side. As Klaus began to walk, something suddenly kicked in, "Klaus!" her firm voice surprising her, "Wait!" she started walk after him.
He whipped around, and Caroline had to stop suddenly. The two stood very close, his blue eyes staring furiously at her. It made her blood run cold.
"Love," the term of endearment was said harshly, coldly as if he used it often and never truly meant it, "you're beautiful, but if you don't stop talking then I may do something I will regret later."
Caroline stayed still, not sure how to feel as she stared straight into Klaus's eyes, should she be scared? Because she didn't really feel scared. Not entirely at least. Adrenaline must be coursing through her veins because she knew she wasn't going back down, and her quick glance down at Henrik's concerned face affirmed that position.
"Tell him I am with Wolf!" Henrik piped in, his voice urgent. She glanced away from Klaus again and back down to Henrik who stood beside the two, moving his head back and forth between them. Klaus noticed her glance and he too looked down at the direction of Henrik, not seeing him. It broke her heart.
She noticed frustration in his eyes, as if upset he could not see what she saw - that is if he believed her. He turned around just as sudden as he had stopped before, and marched away.
"Klaus!" she began after him.
"Please, you need to listen to me! It's the only way for Henrik to move on!" she said, but he ignored her.
A frustrated huff escaped her lips when he didn't stop walking. Finally she caught up with him and she grabbed his wrist, halting him.
"He said he is with Wolf," she tried to explain. Henrik came up to their side right as she said the words. "And we are happy!" Henrik urged her to add.
"And they're happy," she added, releasing his wrist.
Klaus opened his mouth, but Caroline stopped him before he could ruin the whole thing again.
"Please just listen," her voice came out out of breath, and urgent, "I know it's confusing and I probably sound crazy and that I am a horrible person that is probably playing a prank, but I swear I am not. He is here. Henrik is with you. Just follow his instructions and go where I told you to. Under the fountain, near the cobblestone path," she explained, her eyes pleading for him to believe her.
He took a huge breath and looked away, seeming to try to gain some composure. His eyes passed over Henrik, not seeing.
Klaus finally looked back at Caroline, and there was something that was different in his look. "How do you know my name? How do you know to call me Klaus?"
A small smile graced Caroline's lips, "Henrik explained to me that your full name is Niklaus, and only your brother and mother calls you that, while your sister and Henrik called you Nik. Everyone else calls you Klaus." With that she turned to leave, knowing that seed of belief was implanted. He would go where Henrik had directed.
However, she was stopped by Henrik calling after her. She turned in surprise, and looked down at Henrik. Klaus was surprised by her sudden spin, and watched her face change as if she were listening to something important. Shortly after she looked up at him again with her ocean blue eyes and there was something there that he couldn't place.
"He says he doesn't blame you for what happened, and it wasn't your fault," she explained to him. With just that message she watched as Klaus's shoulders began to sag and his face turned down so no one could see his pain. Caroline wasn't sure what compelled her to move but she did so anyway. She reached forward and gently grabbed his hand and gave it a light squeeze. He looked up and Caroline saw no tears.
Her hand slipped out of his, and her soft eyes and encouraging smile turned away from him. Caroline's back was all he saw as she walked away from him.