Summary: Klaroline Parks and Recs style. Based on the episode Road Trip.
A/N: Hopefully this doesn't suck
"So did you see that episode of ER last night?" Bonnie asked taking a sip of her coffee.
Caroline shook her head.
"I haven't had any time. Mystic Falls is having it's annual clean up day in 3 weeks and I'm only a third of the way through my binder."
"Only a third of the way!?" Bonnie mocked gasped, placing her hand on her chest.
Caroline gave her a half hearted glare and smiled.
"I'm sure ER is a great show but there's no need for me to watch it. If I wanna watch ridiculously attractive medical professionals, courageously saving lives; I'll come down to Mystic General and watch you at work instead," she insisted.
Bonnie beamed shyly and took another sip from her mug.
"How is work anyw-"
"-Ooh heads up," Bonnie interjected, an impish grin appearing on her face.
a
Caroline frowned in confusion, realisation dawning on her face when she heard a familiar voice from behind her.
"Caroline,"
The sound of Klaus' unmistakable crisp, accent curling her name around his tongue, caused a slight shiver to go right up Caroline's spine. She immediately straightened, shooting a nervous glance at Bonnie and praying her cheeks weren't as flushed as they felt.
Judging by the look on Bonnie's face, they were red as traffic lights.
"Klaus!" She exclaimed, spinning around and giving him her brightest but most professional as possible smile.
Klaus offered his own easy, lopsided grin in return.
"You look well this morning, love,"
The compliment was innocent enough, but Caroline noticed as Klaus eyes flickered down to the exposed skin on her neck that her sundress left uncovered. She squirmed self-consciously under his gaze, causing his smirk to widen.
"D-did you get those reports I sent you?"
"Yes as a matter of fact Caroline, I did. I came to thank you for delivering them so promptly,"
"Oh that's no trouble. I could do those kinds of reports in my sleep." She replied, waving him off.
"I don't doubt it, sweetheart." He said smiling indulgently at her. "They were extremely thorough in any case. And in case you were wondering I did notice the side note you slipped in about the budget for the founder's ball. Very subtle," he teased.
Caroline ducked her head and giggled, stopping when she saw Bonnie smirking knowingly at the two of them.
Caroline cleared her throat abruptly let her smile fade.
"Mmm, well I guess I'll- uh see you around then?" She said, bashfully tucking one of her curls behind her ear.
Klaus shook his head and flashed her another devastating smile causing the colour in her cheeks to rise even more.
"You'll actually be seeing me sooner rather than later. Stefan asked me just a moment ago if he could see us in his office,"
"Oh? Okay well I guess I'll see you there, tell Stefan I'll be there in a second," she replied.
"Of course love,"
He shot her one last grin over his shoulder before turning to walk away.
"Hey there Klaus," Bonnie called out humouredly, waving to him as he reached the threshold.
He paused and turned. Confusion flickered across his face momentarily, as if he'd only just realised Bonnie had been there the entire time.
"Ah yes, Bonnie. Hello," he murmured awkwardly before disappearing.
"Oh. My. God. Care! Seriously, I have never seen that much sexual tension between two people discussing paperwork!" Bonnie exclaimed.
Caroline sighed deeply and rested her hands in her palms.
"Look I told you, nothing is ever going to happen between me and Klaus. It's against protocol, we could lose our jobs, Bonnie,"
"It's a stupid rule," Bonnie grumbled, scowling and stabbing a fork into her fruit salad.
"Yeah I know," Caroline sighed "But there's nothing I can do about it,"
Bonnie stuffed a piece of a pineapple in her mouth and smiled sympathetically.
"Well my advice, would be this: if you're planning on avoiding your feelings for him, you may wanna try and avoid Klaus for a while, too. No one-to-one situations where there's a risk of anything… occurring, between you two,"
"Yup, definitely. You're absolutely right,"
"Stefan? You wanted to see me?" Caroline said, as she stepped into the office.
"Uh yes, Caroline, please have a seat." Stefan beamed gesturing to the chair next to Klaus.
She smoothed her skirt and sat down. She could feel Klaus' eyes trained on her as she did. She forced herself to look ahead and focus on Stefan who moved to sit behind his desk.
"Thank you both for coming," he said, smiling pleasantly. "I have some news… I'm sending you both on a trip"
Caroline groaned inwardly, feeling her heart sink into the pit of her stomach.
"What sort of trip exactly?" Klaus asked, dubiously.
"I'm glad you asked," Stefan replied."Mystic Falls hasn't hosted the Southern little league tournament in over 40 years. You two are going to travel up to West Virginia and convince the board that that should change,"
"-Not that that doesn't sound like a wonderful idea," Caroline cut in. "I am super excited, believe me. But why are you sending me along with Klaus. I mean surely Damon's way more qualified as the head of the department?"
As she spoke, Stefan regarded her with a look of confusion while Klaus flashed her a less-than-amused look at the suggestion that he be forced into a five hour journey with Damon of all people.
"Well Caroline, while you're only the deputy of the Parks Department, I think that you're more than qualified; your track record speaks for itself. And besides, despite whatever differences you've had in the past, you and Klaus work well together; you have have a history of getting the job done. I have faith in you both and I'm sure you'll manage to be productive," Stefan concluded.
"Yes, I'm more than certain we will be" Klaus quipped, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
Stefan may not have noticed the suggestion in his tone but Caroline certainly did; she resisted the urge to glare him as Stefan spoke again.
"Good. Well you two are free to go, I'll email you the details later on,"
With a quick nod at Stefan, Caroline practically bolted out of the room, briefly catching the smug look on Klaus's face as she did.
"Ugh! Bonnie, everything in your wardrobe is too sexy,"
Caroline held up a pink and black bandage dress and wrinkled her nose.
"I think this is the exact, slutty party dress that Lindsay Lohan wore in Mean Girls,"
"Yeah I know," Bonnie grinned. "I look really good in it,"
"Bonnie help me!" She whined. "I need outfits for this trip that screams 'I don't want anything to happen between us',"
"Caroline relax. Because I'm your friend, I will help you un-seduce him but this is so ridiculous. You obviously like each other and you're going on a road trip, you could literally get a room," Bonnie said, pointedly.
"Yeah and we could also literally get fired," Caroline deadpanned.
She pulled out a folder from her bag and headed towards Bonnie's couch. "Here, I need you to help me pick out the best one out of my list of unsexy topics for conversation."
Bonnie plopped down next to her and frowned as she took her binder from her.
"The history of the ladder; a detailed summary of Whitmore's residential area… wh- 50 useful things you can do with earwax!? Ew Caroline! Is this really necessary?"
"Yes, Bonnie it is. This trip has to be as unromantic as possible,"
"Ooh I have an idea for a topic," Bonnie said suddenly.
"Oh yeah? Shoot."
"I think you should ask him about his penis,"
Bonnie shrieked as Caroline tossed a cushion in her direction.
"Bonnie Bennett you are no help!" Caroline yelled as Bonnie took off into the kitchen, cackling loudly.
"I hate you," screamed Caroline.
"I love you too, Care."
The car journey there was silent and tense. Partly because Caroline refused to speak to or make eye contact with Klaus for the first half of the journey. She was far too nervous to even use any of her practised conversation material.
The realisation has dawned on her, that this trip would be the first time she and Klaus would be completely alone together - for no less than four hours, well five if she included gas breaks - with no Stefan and no restrictions.
Just them, in Klaus' car. With Klaus' backseat right behind them. Not that she'd thought about anything happening in Klaus' back seat...
"Are you alright love?" he asked, his blue eyes shining with concern.
"What? Oh- me? Oh, yeah- no, I'm fine. Totally. Why do you ask?" Caroline stammered.
Klaus frowned slightly and drummed his fingers on the dashboard.
"Apologies love, I've just don't think I've you this quiet for such a large stretch of time before,"
"Very funny," Caroline said dryly, giving him a humourless smile.
Klaus smirked and turned back to the traffic lights.
"We don't have to, of course but I'm told that these sort of journeys go by much faster if there's something to talk about," he suggested.
Caroline turned and beamed at him.
"Well, interestingly enough, I just read the most fascinating article recently, in Time magazine,"
"Oh?"
"It's all about the history of the ladder,"
Klaus frowned in confusion.
"... but I suppose the best thing about Whitmore's accommodations is how spacious the rooms are. I mean, each room even has a fireplace. Which is crazy, because what kind of dormitory has a fireplace right?"
"Fascinating, sweetheart," Klaus responded. Although his tone implied the exact opposite.
"You certainly seem to know an awful lot about the campus, love. Tell me, Caroline did you attend there?"
"Um… actually, no,"
"Ah, I see,"
There was a long stretch of tense silence before Klaus suggested that they listen to some music.
"Oh sure I've got us covered," Caroline informed him.
"I burned an entire mixtape especially for this trip,"
Of course what Klaus didn't know was, the music she'd put on the disk was about as stimulating as the conversation they were having-
-and it was three hours long. (Her backup plan if the earwax talk wasn't very effective).
Klaus jumped as he pushed the disk into the CD player and a sharp, twanging sound erupted from the speakers.
"Caroline?..."
"It's called Banjo Bonanza," she shouted at him over the music.
"I can't say that I'm all that familiar with the banjo," Klaus shouted back.
"Well it really is a remarkable instrument,"
"I hadn't realised it was quite so loud…"
"Caroline… are these… whale noises?" Klaus asked.
"Mmmhm," Caroline answered, fiddling nervously with her hair. "I find it relaxes me,"
Klaus stared at her incredulously
"You can totally change it if you want."
Klaus wearily reached out his arm to press the button for the next track, bracing himself for whatever was coming next.
This time it was Caroline's turn to jump as an unfamiliar but pleasant sound, began to fill the car.
'For once in my life I've got someone that needs me…'
"Wait. What the hell? How did that get on there!?" Caroline demanded, reaching over to the stereo to find out why she wasn't hearing 'Mandarin for Beginners'.
"Leave it love," Klaus implored, gently taking her hand before she could reach the stereo.
"I'm not usually one for contemporary music but I do enjoy Stevie Wonder as much as the next man," he smiled.
Caroline quickly slipped her hand out from Klaus's, feeling her cheeks beginning to burn.
Sneaky-ass Bonnie. She thought as she slumped back into the chair. Must have snuck that in while I wasn't looking.
Caroline reminded herself to fire Bonnie a very scolding text message at the next gas station.
"So where did you attend university, Sweetheart?" Klaus asked, conversationally. "-If you don't mind me asking," he added when she looked startled by the question.
"Oh, I actually went out of state, to Stanford," she replied.
Klaus appeared surprised by this.
"Stanford, hmm. I would never have guessed," he mused.
"Well what does that mean?" Caroline asked defensively.
"I only mean that I never pegged you for someone willing to travel so far away from home." He assured her. "I'm more than confident that Stanford university was extremely fortunate to have you,"
Caroline blushed and turned to look out of the window.
"So what led you to return?"
Caroline shrugged. "Well I did a little traveling in between studying and while I did enjoy broadening my horizons, Mystic Falls is always going to be home. I couldn't imagine living anywhere else,"
Instead of answering Klaus simply sat silently, regarding her with almost quiet reverence. When the intensity of his gaze became too much, Caroline quickly changed the subject.
"So! How far is it till our next gas break?"
Klaus turned and squinted at the GPS.
"Should be about 15 more minutes," he supplied.
"Good then we're right on schedule," Caroline mused, checking her watch.
"So have you ever been to this hotel Stefan's putting us up in,The ?" Klaus asked.
"No, but I convinced to Stefan change our reservations to a different hotel nearby. The Ivy."
Klaus raised his eyebrows intrigued.
"Oh yeah it's 10 times better," Caroline emphasised.
"You've been before?"
"Yeah, it's perfect. The towels are soft and the staff are so helpful and friendly. Ooooh and they leave those little chocolates on your pillow. And speaking of the beds-" she tilted back her head and let her eyes roll.
"-You wouldn't believe how comfortable they are,"
"I'm sure I can't wait to find out," he purred suggestively.
Klaus smirked as Caroline's breath hitched in her throat, his eyes smouldering.
"So um, anyway… the bathrooms are ridiculously clean and when you step out onto the shower rug it's like putting your feet on a little lamb. Now I don't usually do this but I when I got home, I gave the place a five star rating on Yelp." she gushed.
As Klaus gave her that look once more, Caroline wrung her hands and swallowed nervously, ceasing her excited rambling.
More silence followed.
Eventually they pulled up to another red led light. She flinched suddenly as Klaus extended his arm towards her face.
"Klaus? What are you doing?!"
"Stay still love," he murmured "It's an eyelash,"
Caroline let her eyes flutter shut, felt a shudder run through her as the pad of Klaus' finger gently swiped her cheek.
"There," he whispered "All gone."
His hand lingered and slowly ghosted over her cheek.
It only took a second before Caroline snapped back to her senses quickly batting his hand away.
"Maybe we shouldn't talk for the rest of the trip," she blurted out, recoiling away from him.
"Caroline?-"
"I'm just. I feel car sick, okay?"
Klaus stared skeptically at her for a moment in silence, before nodding and turning back to the traffic.
"Alright love we'll be at the gas station soon. We'll get you some water. Okay?"
"Mmm," she nodded staring straight ahead as they started moving again.
..."So you see, given Mystic Falls' rich history, combined with the state of the art sports facilities we have; there really is no competition in terms of who you should appoint as this year's Little League Tournament hosts,"
The panel gave Caroline a polite round of applause as she concluded her speech (but not without giving them the best smile the former Miss Mystic Falls had to offer).
"A very impressive presentation Miss Forbes," The first board member said glancing down at his clipboard "But I'd be remiss if I didn't bring up the incident that occurred the last time that Mystic Falls-"
"-I'm sure there's no reason to drag up something long since put in the past," Caroline interjected, brushing off his comment with a nervous chuckle.
Klaus stepped forward, as the gentleman gave Caroline a disapproving look over the rim of his glasses.
"I think what my colleague is trying to say is: It was... rather unfortunate that Mayor Augustine became intoxicated at the last championship, however please rest assured, the town's current Mayor is more than competent and I'm sure she has no intention of following in her predecessor's footsteps-"
"-Eagleton is bigger; Lucasville has a bigger venue; why should the board allow Mystic Falls to host the event?" A woman on the right of the panel asked cutting him off.
"It's simple." Klaus stated before Caroline jump in to answer. "Mystic Falls is an excellent place to live."
Caroline's eyes widened in shock, unable to hide her surprise at Klaus' words. For it it was the first time he'd expressed anything but contempt for the tiny little town that he'd been stuck in for the sake of his job.
-"The people are warm and friendly and they work hard. There's a sense of community and it's a wonderful place for families and children, thus making it the perfect place to host the league this year."
"In fact I personally believe the board would be making a devastating mistake if they didn't choose Mystic Falls, Virginia for its venue this year"
The room fell into silence as one by one the board members began to smile at one another and then at Klaus.
Caroline didn't realise it at first but she was smiling at him too.
"I can't believe we did it!" Caroline squealed grinning down at the stamped letter of approval in her hand.
"You did it sweetheart," Klaus maintained, smiling affectionately at her.
"No. Usually I do it but this time it was a team effort," Caroline stated, pulling out her phone to text Stefan the good news.
"Well I think this is cause for celebration then. Let's you and I go out for some dinner, my treat. Stefan recommend a charming little seafood place to me." he proposed.
"Uh dinner? Are you- uh, sure that's a good idea?" Caroline mumbled nervously.
Klaus stepped toward her and placed his hands on both of her shoulders.
Caroline had to resist to moan as the overwhelming scent of his aftershave hit her as he came closer.
"Sweetheart we've worked hard for this, at the very least we owe it to ourselves to take some time out," he reasoned with her.
Caroline sighed seeing Klaus wasn't going to give in.
"Alright," she said relenting. "But you have to let me pay for myself,"
Because this is not a date. She thought.
"Caroline-"
"Klaus."
"Alright fine. As you wish, sweetheart,"
Neither of them spoke during dinner. Although things were admittedly less tense than they had been in the car. Klaus glanced at her every so often as he ate his salmon but didn't make any comments.
"I thought it was really sweet what you said today, about Mystic Falls," she finally said, cutting into her lobster.
Klaus stopped eating and smiled at her.
"Well I meant it," he said, looking up at her sincerely.
"It's just you've never been the biggest fan of the place. I was so surprised to hear you saying all those nice things," she continued.
"On the contrary love. I found I've grown to quite enjoy living in the town; small and quaint as it may be, it has grown on me," he confessed.
Caroline arched her eyebrows and smiled at him.
"In fact I look forward to the part of my day when I get to sit down and chat with the town,"
"Oh," Caroline said blushing.
"Yes, in fact the town is extremely beautiful, I find myself thinking about it quite often,"
"Klaus…" Caroline said softly, with shake of her head.
"The town also has rather pretty blonde hair-"
Caroline's face broke out into a full smile and she began to laugh unreservedly. Klaus' expression mirrored her's and then softened as he cautiously reached out and took her hand in his.
"Sweetheart, I think we should at least talk about this," His blue orbs bored into hers.
"It isn't just me." Klaus asked, although he phrased it as more of a statement than a question.
Caroline tugged her lip between her teeth and sighed. "No, it isn't just you," she whispered.
"Good," he hummed giving her hand a squeeze.
And it felt good. Just the two of them alone. Her hand fitting so perfectly into Klaus' large one. It created a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach.
But quickly, it was replaced by a surge of panic. She abruptly withdrew her hand from Klaus' and rose from her chair.
"What's wrong?" He demanded.
"I just need the bathroom, I have to- um… I'll be back okay?"
She rushed away from their table before Klaus could form a response.
"Bonnie," she hissed, urgently. "Oh my gosh, answer your phone! Answer your ph-"
"-Care?"
"Oh my goodness, thank God." Caroline sighed, already feeling calmer at the sound of Bonnie's voice.
"Caroline what's wrong, has something happened?" Bonnie questioned, sounding concerned.
"It's an emergency Bonnie, we have a serious code Klaus,"
"Y'know it's not really code if you say his name -"
"We're having dinner - I mean we're in a restaurant, were not having dinner - it's not like that. It's not a date, but it feels like a date. He held my hand and I let him and we started talking about our feelings and ugh, I'm just so confused, help me-"
"Caroline. Whoa, hey, relax alright. Everythings going to be fine okay," Bonnie soothed.
"How can you say that!? We're crossing into non professional territory Bonnie! This cannot be happening right now."
"Well maybe it's a good thing, the two of you talking out your feelings for each other. Maybe then it will be easier to figure out what to do." Bonnie suggested.
"No. I know exactly what I need to do. I've let this go far enough already, it's time to revert back to the plan: Bonnie, read me the script."
"Seriously, Caroline do you really think that-"
"-Please. Just read it, Bonnie." Caroline beseeched her.
"Alright, alright, I've got it right here somewhere, hold on a sec,"
The was a shuffling noise and then the distinct sound of paper being un-crumpled and before long Caroline could hear Bonnie's voice on the line again.
Bonnie sighed.
"Okay, Caroline I'm here. Are you ready?".
"Yes,"
"Okay. 'Caroline, this is past you, speaking to you through your bff Bonnie (friend and beautiful nurse)' - aw, Caroline, thank you - 'If you're listening to this then you are very close to making a decision that could potentially be a mistake. Whatever you do, do not give into your feelings for Klaus. Remember: YOUR CAREER IS ON THE LINE'"
"Ugh, shut up Bonnie. What do you know anyway." Caroline snapped without thinking.
"Caroline! It's your script!?" Bonnie scoffed.
"I know, I know I'm sorry. I just, I don't wanna fight this anymore you know." Caroline huffed, resting her face in her palm.
"So go for it!" Bonnie urged her. "Follow your heart, who cares about the stupid rules,"
"No! Stop, you're supposed to stop me, tell me what a terrible mistake I'm making, be firm."
"No. Stop." Bonnie monotoned.
"Shut up, Bonnie, I'm doing it anyway," Caroline smirked.
"Yay!"
Caroline hung up the phone and smiled triumphantly feeling a new wave of energy run through her.
Rules be damned. This is what she wanted. Never let it be said that Caroline Forbes wasn't a go-getter.
She headed out from the foyer, back into the dining area, expecting to find Klaus smiling and waiting for her.
Instead she came face to face with Stefan.
"Caroline! Great of you to join us. Klaus and I were just discussing today's success."
"Stefan," Caroline gasped. "I- I didn't know, I mean I had no idea-" she stuttered, attempting unsuccessfully to hide her shock (and disappointment).
"Well when you texted me the news, I just had to drive up here to congratulate the two of you. I mean you pulled off the impossible here; we all know what went down last time, with Mayor Augustine." Stefan replied.
"Well it was all Caroline really," Klaus insisted. "The board were extremely impressed with her presentation,"
Caroline cheeks coloured as she and Klaus briefly made eye contact. His dimples grew prominent as he smiled at her.
"Well I'm extremely proud of both of you." Stefan proclaimed, breaking the moment between them. "I knew I could trust my two lieutenants,"
"Caroline, please, sit," he encouraged, noting that she still frozen on the spot. "I wanna discuss everything that happened today with the two of you."
Caroline slumped into the chair, albeit rather reluctantly, deliberately not making any eye contact with Klaus.
You wouldn't believe what happened today even if we could tell you.
Stefan picked up a menu and beamed at them both.
"So, what looks good?"
Caroline sighed as she strode toward Stefan's office; reflecting on how utterly disastrous things had worked out that weekend. Not only did Stefan have dinner with them for the rest of the evening, but he insisted that both she and Klaus stay the night in his condo; with him on the couch and her in Stefan's guest bedroom.
It had been awkward to say the least; especially with everything unsaid still hanging in the air. But overall Caroline conceded that it was probably for the best. Whatever it was between them, wasn't worth losing their jobs over. Stefan's suddenly appearance had cleared the stardust from her eyes and now she was thinking clearly and rationally. It would never work.
She knocked twice on Stefan's door, jumping back in surprise when Klaus emerged from the room instead of him.
"Oh! Hi, I just needed to hand these reports in to Stefan," Caroline explained.
"Ah, well he isn't here at the moment" Klaus explained.
"Oh okay well in that case I'll just-"
All of a sudden the world became hazy. Klaus grabbed her wrist and-and tenderly brushed his lips against her own. As he felt her beginning respond, he tilted her face in his hands and began to deepen the kiss. Caroline moaned allowing him to slide his tongue past her lips and brush it against her own.
She gasped as he finally released her feeling dizzy and lightheaded. She looked up to see Klaus looking back at her with a triumphant smile.
He gently skimmed his hands through her hair and she sighed.
"Uh, oh,"
Hi readers, so this is my new drabble collection where I|'ll be posting all my stories, for those who were previously reading Don't Be Angry Love, I know this story was in there, dw the next chapter will be a new story. If you've decided to follow me here many thanks, I appreaciate you.x