I. This Modern Love
What are you holding out for?
What's always in the way?
Why so damn absent minded?
Why so scared of romance?
This modern love breaks me
This modern love wastes me
"The truth is, I've tried to stop thinking about you, but I can't." My heart squishes itself together in my chest, and it's painful and I want to cry. I let out a frustrated sigh. Why does every word he say have to be so perfect? I shake my head and press my fingers to my head, walking away from him. He doesn't let me get very far. "Come to New Orleans." He pleads. I ignore him. "What are you afraid of?" I spin around on my heels. I think about the bracelet I got from him, the dress. The drawing. About the amount of times he's almost killed my best friends. About how easy everything comes with him, how alike we are.
"You! I'm afraid of you." He frowns.
"Wouldn't it be more accurate to say you're afraid of yourself?" He counters, sauntering forward. "Your darkest desires," He continues. Too close. "Elena was right, wasn't she? Deep down, you long to have your perfect feathers ruffled." I can feel his breath on my face. Wayyy too close.
I swallow involuntarily.
I laugh nervously, taking a step backwards. "Have you been drinking crazy juice?" He steps forward. I step back. "I-I don't know where you've been getting your info from, but you're wrong." A smile breaks out on Klaus's face. "Oh?" He laughs, striding forward again. I mirror his action automatically and my back bumps up against a tree. He's inches away from my face and his eyes flick down to my mouth before coming back up to meet my eyes. "Maybe not so deep down then?" He purrs. My stomach clenches uncomfortably and I feel like I'm going to pass out. Shit. He leans forward slightly and I try desperately to think of some way to avoid this freaking rabbit hole. He's going to kiss me.
"Fine!" I hear myself say, "I mean, I'll go. Temporarily." His head jerks back in surprise and his eyes are wide. "But not for you, things have been cuckoo bananas around here. I could use a vacation. An all-expenses paid vacation." I put my hands on my hips and narrow my eyes at him. Are you crazy, Caroline Forbes? You're supposed to get out of the hole, not swan dive into it! Things have been nuts here, and I could use a vacation though…
Klaus grins and backs off. He points his finger at me, "Oh ho ho, my sweet, sweet Caroline, you never cease to amaze me." He simply stares for a moment, and against my will, I feel a little welling of pride at his statement. He clasps his hands together and his face goes serious. He adjusts his cuffs. He looks like he's striking up a deal. "Very well then," He says cheerily, "you will get an all-expenses paid vacation, courtesy of yours truly." He takes a little bow. "This vacation will be, with me, to New Orleans, where you will stay, for a month."
Oh my god, is he serious? A month? I do have a life. "No." I reply, crossing my arms. I step forward. "What is going to happen is you are taking me, to New Orleans for two weeks," I hold up two fingers and pause. "And we sleep in separate rooms." I'm proud of myself for adding that last part. It was dangerously missing before. My finger pokes him in the chest. It's like stone. I think of the tattoo that rests along his left shoulder. It's a beautiful, artistic tattoo, a feather morphing into a flock of birds, simple, but beautiful artwork. He's built like a sculpture himself, lithe and strong…
In moments like this, the most annoying part of being a vampire is my libido. A very short lifetime of pinning over men who didn't want me has left that desiring part of me heightened. I feel it all the time, no matter how important other things are, or how twisted the cravings get… And whenever Klaus is around, it seems to take away my ability to think. Curbing blood thirst is easier than this. Sometimes it's easy to smother the feelings in bags of b positive.
A very Klaus-ey chuckle resonates through the forest and he takes one of my hands in his and brings it to his lips, placing a soft kiss upon it. I've learned that it's useless to reprimand him for his old school gentlemanly habits. Not only is it ingrained in him, despite how un-gentlemanly he really is, but he also knows it bothers me. "Whatever you say, love." The pad of his thumb strokes the top of my hand for a moment. It makes my veins ache. I frown at the feeling. "Well. I'd better go and make some calls." He lets go of my hand and walks backwards slowly. "I'll admit, Caroline, this was not the way I expected this to go. Not that I'm complaining." He turns around, "Oh, and no take backs, love." He calls over his shoulder. And just like that, he's gone. I may have imagined it, but he seemed to be bouncing a little.
As soon as he's left, I feel like the biggest idiot in the world. "No, no, NO!" I hit one of the trees in frustration, and have to yank my fist out of the dent I made in it. "God, how stupid can you be?" I groan aloud at myself. Klaus Mikaelson is bad news, very bad news. He's done nothing but hurt everyone I care about, including me. And oh, I've got a brilliant idea, why don't we go and munch on some crawfishermen in Louisiana! Nice one, Care.
I walk quickly back and forth and then decide to start on my way home. I'm not going to get anything done standing here. I could use some fresh, non-Klaus tainted air. What am I going to do? I can't go, obviously. It'd be, like, the worst idea in the world and I can't even begin to explain the reasons why... I'm not even sure I can come up with them at all right now. My thoughts turn bitter as the unfairness of having to come up with reasons to avoid a vacation hits me. Why am I the only one who never gets a day off? I'm always helping everyone, Tyler, Elena, Stefan. When is it going to be my time?
I stop walking. I'm not thinking straight. This is an emergency, and I decide to call the one voice of reason I have left.
"What's up Caroline?"
"Oh thank god, Stefan. I did something really stupid."
"Is someone hurt?"
"No, it's just—see, the thing is—I, uh—" There's a crash of glass breaking.
"Caroline. I'm on Elena duty right now, and things aren't exactly a walk in the park." I hear shouting in the background. "If something is wrong you need to tell me, so I can help. Now what—ELENA! Fuck, here." I hear a shuffling noise and the sound fades.
"Stefan? Hello?"
"Hellooo, Vampire Barbie." Damon. Ugh.
"Damon, what is going—"
"Not important—for you to know anyway." What the hell does Elena see in him? That's the one good thing about her humanity switch being off; she's not Damon crazy. She's not anything crazy.
I sigh. "I need to talk to Stefan."
"Yeahh… Not going to happen. Luckily, I'm here. Now do you want help, or not?"
It's better than nothing. "Alright. So, I saw Klaus in the forest, and we started talking and—"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Let me stop you right there. Original boy troubles does not an emergency make, Blondie."
"I didn't want to talk to you about it anyway! I just don't know what to do, and I'm panicking. I mean, I can't just go to New Orleans with him, it's wrong on so many—"
"Hold on. He asked you to come with him?"
"Yes, but I—"
"Go."
"What? No—"
"Listen Blondie, we are falling behind on everything over here, shit has hit the fan, and the last thing we need is for Klaus to have some plot we don't know about. Go with him to New Orleans, and find out what he's up to."
"But you're not listening—"
"Don't need to. That's the beauty of common sense. And besides, if you didn't want to go with him, you just wouldn't go. You called, because you wanted an excuse from my dear baby brother to take the decision out of your hands. I'm telling you, that you're going, and you're taking one for the team. Don't disappoint me, Barbie. You can thank me later." The line goes dead.
I can't believe this is happening. Elena got her humanity back, but she's on some Katherine hating murder spree, and I'm packing my bags. I haven't really wanted to talk to her, not yet. She's preoccupied with plans of revenge, anyhow. The morning after the phone call, Stefan called back to tell me he agreed with Damon. 'It makes sense, Caroline. We could really use a one up right now, on anything, and you're in the perfect position to do it. You guys are kind of friends anyway, right?'
Ha, friends.
Saying Klaus and I are like friends is like saying vampires and the sun are friends. I glance at my gaudy daylight ring and shake my head. No, not like vampires and the sun, like…a lion and a deer. There's no protection from him.
As soon as he has his claws in me, I'm done for.
I shove more things into my suitcase and groan. Just what have I gotten myself into?
AN: So, tell me what you think. Pretty please. Inspired by a feels overload at the 'end' of Klaroline. Smooth move, Julie. Holdin out hope against all odds. This is AU, fuck that it was Silas, it was Klaroline GOLD. Things will get a bit more intense soon. Assuming this continues as planned.
