AN: Hey everybody! So yay I FINALLY had time to update! I'm sorry I hadn't uploaded a new chapter I've just been busy with college orientation, some more college stuff and then I went on vacation, and it's all been back to back so I haven't really had time to write except for today! Anyways, originally this was going to be the last part but i'm going to split this last part into two parts! Not to mention, the next chapter may not necessarily be the ending of their story.. ;) Hope you guys like it!
~O~
It was the soft stirring of the blonde in his arms that woke Klaus up. He opened his eyes to find Caroline turning around, her back to him and her head resting on his arm as her hand rested lightly on his. A smile graced his features as he looked on at her, before turning to the side to see the alarm clock. It was exactly 8 o clock. With that, he proceeded to slide his arm out from underneath Caroline cautiously, so he wouldn't wake her up. Once his hand was free, he slowly got out of bed and made his way over to the other side. He looked down at Caroline, who slept peacefully. He pulled the covers up a bit more before he made his way out of the room and straight to the shower.
Once he turned on the shower, he stood underneath the cascading water to think about everything that had happened last night. It was amazing how one night really had changed everything. All he had expected of this trip to New York was to have his business meeting, go to Rebekah's baby shower, and go back to England and continue being the workaholic he'd been for the past few years. But meeting Caroline had changed everything. She was a breath of fresh air compared to the women he was used to. Besides the fact that she was gorgeous physically, she was beautiful on the inside. For someone who had been through something as hard as hearing her father get murdered, and having her boyfriend cheat on her when they'd been together for so long, she still managed to have a smile on her face. She was strong, beautiful, and full of light. Being around her just made everything fall into place. Now, Klaus wasn't one to say that It was "love at first sight" or any of those cliché comments, but he knew that whatever there was between him and Caroline, was like nothing he'd ever really felt before. There was a connection there that was unexplainable.
Then, a thought trailed into his mind and he closed his eyes tightly; he was going back to London later that night. There was a possibility that he wouldn't see Caroline again. A possibility that last night, one of the best nights of his life, was soon going to be only a lasting memory of the time he had with her. He shook his head and groaned. 10 minutes later, he was done and headed to his bedroom to get dressed. He slipped on a pair of boxers and a crisp white shirt that hung on his closet, before reaching for a pair of dress pants and putting them on as well. He grabbed a belt that hung on his belt rack and slipped it on. As he draped a dark blue tie over his shoulder, he heard the front door slam shut. Klaus's eyes widened slightly and he rushed out of his room and straight to the guest room.
The bed had been made, and it was lacking a certain blonde. His clothes were folded neatly atop of the comforter. He made his way to the bathroom where Caroline's clothes had been to find that they were gone as well, along with their owner. He rested against the doorway and ran a hand through his tousled hair and let out a loud sigh. She was gone.
~O~
Caroline woke up to the sound of water running. Her eyes fluttered open and she took in her surroundings. Everything that happened the night before rushed to her. She sat up on the bed and buried her head in her hands. It had honestly been one of the best nights of her life…but she had just broken up with Tyler. And no matter how much Klaus said that he didn't feel that he was being the rebound guy, she couldn't help but still feel that way, even though she knew that the connection she felt with him wasn't something she would feel with some random guy she was just using to get over Tyler. But then again, this random guy wasn't just any Average Joe. He was successful, handsome, had his own company and oh yeah, didn't live in the same state; let alone the same country. And he would be going back to London tonight. She had just gone through this breakup with Tyler; she would spare herself the heartache.
She got out of bed and stretched her arms, before turning back to make the bed, returning it to the state it was in the night before. Minutes later, when she heard the water stop running and Klaus closing the door to his bedroom, she slipped out of the room and headed straight to the bathroom, where clothes from the night before were. She took off Klaus's clothes and put on her own, then making her way back to the guest bedroom and folding his clothes and setting it down on the bed. She walked out of the room once more and stepped out into the hallway. She sighed, turning her gaze to Klaus's bedroom door. You can stay, her subconscious told her.
But she knew better, and she wouldn't.
She grabbed her boots and once she was at the front door, she put them on. She grabbed her purse as well. She gave the apartment one last longing look before taking a deep breath and opening the door and rushing out of the apartment, slamming the door behind her. The night before had been great and meeting Klaus had been…life changing. But she couldn't get caught up in this. They lived in two different countries…it would never work out. They would both be better off if they forgot about each other.
~O~
Klaus's meeting had been extremely successful. He met with the investors and they had been pleased with the final agreements. They signed the contract and Klaus was out of the building by 11. His driver from the night before was still his assigned driver for the day. He smiled kindly as the older man opened the door for him to step into the town car and closed the door. The man got into the driver's seat and met the younger man's gaze through the rearview mirror.
"Where to Mr. Mikaelson?" he questioned, as he turned on the car.
"Mystic Coffee Shop, from last night," Klaus answered. A small smile formed on the older man's face, knowing very well why the younger man had chosen that specific location. He nodded in understanding and made his way to the establishment.
~O~
"Here you go Ms. Ramirez! Your cortadito," Caroline smiled sweetly at the older Puerto Rican woman in front of her. Ms. Ramirez looked at Caroline through the large red glasses that were perched atop of her nose and smiled.
"Ay, thank you sweetheart," she said, taking the drink in her hand, and taking a sip of it. "Great as always."
Caroline once again smiled at the older woman. "Perfect. Have a good day, and say hi to Mr. Ramirez for me!"
"Of course I will, mija(mi-ha)! You know he misses coming here, and he says to tell you that he promises he'll be back once he finishes recovering from surgery," the woman answered as headed for the door, turning back to look at the blonde.
"I'll take him up on that promise," Caroline laughed, as she waved goodbye to Ms. Ramirez, and turned to Grace, who was coming from the kitchen with a fresh tray of brownies.
"Here, let me help you with that," Caroline said, as she rushed over to her co-worker and took the tray from her hands.
"Caroline, I may be 67 years old but that doesn't mean I'm some fragile old lady," she reprimanded, putting her hands on her hips and looking at the blonde pointedly.
Caroline sighed as she slid the small glass door and placed the tray of brownies inside the display window, turning to the older woman and shrugging. "I'm sorry Grace, I just want to help you as much as I can and some of these trays can get kind of heavy."
"I know sweetie, but you worry too much sometimes! I'll be fine! Now I'm going to go back to the kitchen and check on the cookies," Grace answered, as she turned on her heel and went to the back. Caroline looked around the coffee shop and couldn't help but smile. Ever since she was a little girl, she'd loved baking. Though her parents and family members told her it wasn't the best job choice, Caroline didn't listen to them. She stuck to her dream, and with the eventual support of her mother and Tyler, she was able to open her coffee shop. She chose that instead of a bakery because there were already several bakeries near her establishment. She made the coffee shop, and all the cakes, cupcakes, muffins, cookies, and brownies that were on display were made by her and Grace each morning. At that moment, the coffee shop had several customers sitting at the small tables either engaged in conversations with their friends or working on something in their laptop or Smartphone. She had achieved her dream, and she was extremely proud of it. In fact, next week was the coffee shop's one year anniversary and she was planning a party for the workers and costumers. She turned back to grab the large white binder that rested on the counter behind her and put it in front of her, flipping through the pages until she reached the planning page for the party.
"Decorations: check. Invitations: already set out in front. Need to pass by the market and get some cups," she muttered, biting on her bottom lip as she grabbed the pen next to her and scribbled down what she needed.
"Am I invited to this party of yours?" a very familiar voice spoke. Caroline lifted her gaze hesitantly to see Klaus standing in front of her, looking as handsome as ever in his business suit, with a smirk on his face as he looked on at her.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, setting down the pen and closing the binder.
"Do you make it a habit of leaving someone's house without saying goodbye?" he questioned, as he leaned forward and rested his arms on the counter.
"I had to leave, I had to open the coffee shop," Caroline answered as she set the binder in the back counter and turned to look at Klaus once more.
"Regardless of that, love, I offered you my hospitality last night. The least you could've done was said goodbye," he acknowledged.
Caroline shook her head, sighing. "Everything's just easier if you don't say goodbye."
"What are you implying, sweetheart?" he inquired, standing straight.
Caroline sighed once more, turning away from him and walking over to the doorway that led to the kitchen. "Grace, come out front please. I have to deal with something; I'll be back in bit."
"Don't worry dear!" the older woman replied, as she made her way out of the kitchen. Caroline smiled at her before turning on her heel and walking out from behind the counter motioning for Klaus to follow her outside.
"Why did you say that?" he asked.
"Because Klaus, this is it! Yesterday was an amazing night and I could honestly consider it one of the best nights of my life, but it was only meant to be a one night thing. You're going back to London tonight and I'm staying here in New York. We live different lives, it wasn't going to work out," Caroline exclaimed, her voice becoming softer at the end. She looked down at the floor, shaking her head. She sighed and looked back up at him.
"It was nice meeting you and getting to know you," she said, giving him a half-hearted smile, "Goodbye Klaus." She turned around, beginning to walk back into the coffee shop, when she felt a strong hand wrap around hers. She sighed and turned around to face Klaus again, his hand still wrapped around hers.
"Then let's not say goodbye just yet," he began, but Caroline shook her head.
"You said it yourself, last night was great. I could also consider it one of the best nights I've ever experienced. But how about we continue it into today? I do have my sister's baby shower at 1:30, and she said that it is imperative that I have a date," he continued.
"I have to stay at the coffee shop," she began, racking her brain for other reasons to not go with him. Spending the rest of his time in New York together would only prolong the goodbye, and would make it harder for her.
"Oh come on, Caroline. What are you so afraid of?" he asked, exasperated. You, she thought as she stared at him. She had worn her heart on her sleeve before, and it had ended up with Tyler cheating on her. And in the short time she'd known Klaus, she knew that she was starting to like him. They had connected in a way she'd never connected with anybody else before, and it was scary. She didn't want to fall head first into something she wasn't sure would even work out.
"Please?" he questioned. Caroline gave him an 'are-you-serious' look, which Klaus answered with puppy eyes. Caroline immediately broke into a smile and she let out a small giggle.
"I cannot believe you just used the puppy eyes on me!" she laughed, pointing at him.
"So is that a yes?" he asked, his tone laced with hope. She looked at the coffee shop for several seconds, and then turned her gaze back to Klaus, who was awaiting her answer. She rolled her eyes and let out a sigh.
"Fine, but let me ask Grace if she's ok with handling the shop by herself and you obviously have to take me home so I can get ready. Deal?" she asked. He nodded in response. She motioned for him to stay outside while she went inside to talk to the older woman. She approached her and he saw her speaking and pointing over to him. The woman gave Caroline a kind smile and nodded at her. Caroline smiled at her and hugged her tight before disappearing into the back, appearing several minutes later with her stuff in hand. She walked out of the coffee shop and looked at Klaus.
"I'm all yours," she smiled. He smiled in response and walked over to the town car, where he opened the door for her. She slipped in and he followed after. A while later, the car pulled up at Caroline's apartment, and Caroline was greeted by a sight she was not prepared for.
"What is he doing here?" she muttered to herself, as she saw Tyler standing outside the door of the building, dressed casually in a grey v-neck and worn out jeans, with his hands buried in his pockets. He was waiting for her. At her comment, Klaus turned his gaze to the direction Caroline was looking in and he immediately knew what she was referring to.
"I'm guessing that's that fool of an ex boyfriend of yours?" he said, his tone slightly bitter. After spending only one night with Caroline, he was baffled at why Tyler would decide to cheat on her. Caroline let out a frustrated sigh and nodded as she turned to face Klaus.
"Do you want me to take care of it?" he questioned.
She shook her head. "I'm a big girl, I can do this." Her tone was joking, but he knew that she didn't really want to do this. She opened the door and stepped out, walking towards Tyler, who immediately turned to face her.
"Care I've been trying to reach you all night," he said quickly, walking over to meet her halfway but she immediately put her hand in front of him, causing him to stop.
"What do you want Tyler?" she asked.
He sighed. "Look yesterday was just a big misunderstanding. I-,"
"So you haven't been sleeping around with that slut for the past few months?" she questioned.
"No-I mean yes but-,"
"Then how is there a misunderstanding? You've been cheating on me with that Haley girl and that's that. We're over, Tyler. If you came here to give me some half-assed apology then you can forget it." She scoffed at him and tried to push past him but he reached out and grabbed her arm.
"Caroline, will you listen to me? I'm trying to talk to you," he said firmly, his tone showing his frustration.
She whipped her head to face him once more, "I'm done talking Tyler. I've given you 3 years of my life and that has amounted up to nothing. I don't want to waste another second with you." She struggled to escape his grasp, but he held on tighter.
"Tyler let me go," she said through gritted teeth.
"No."
"I'm sorry mate, does there seem to be a problem?" Both Tyler and Caroline turned to see Klaus walking over to where they both stood.
"Nothing that concerns you, so you can keep moving," Tyler stated.
Klaus chuckled. "Actually mate, this does concern me. If you didn't notice, she got out of my town car. You see, Caroline here is my date for a very important event this afternoon and I need her to be able to get inside her apartment and get ready."
Tyler turned to look at Caroline and scoffed. "You give me shit about Haley when you're seeing this guy? What a load of bullshit."
"Actually, you ignorant prick; she and I are just friends. She's done nothing wrong, unlike you who couldn't notice a great thing when he had it. Now, I'm afraid I'm wasting far too much time on this; so if you don't mind Caroline needs to get up to her apartment to get ready. I'd appreciate it if you'd release her," Klaus said firmly, a hard glare set on Tyler. Tyler clenched his jaw and nodded slowly, releasing Caroline from his grasp. Immediately, Caroline's hand reached up and slapped him hard.
"Fuck you," she spat angrily. Tyler scoffed, his jaw still clenched as he shook his head and walked away. Both blondes watched him walk away before turning to look at each other.
"Thanks," Caroline said softly.
"Anytime, sweetheart. You should go up and get ready, I'll be waiting down here," Klaus said. Caroline nodded and headed inside her apartment building, while Klaus got inside the town car.
"That was a very chivalrous act, Mr. Mikaelson," the driver commented, once Klaus was inside the car.
"What can I say? She's bringing out the best in me," he joked, as he reached for his phone. He looked for sister's name and quickly typed in a message.
Bringing a date to your shower. Proud of me?
He wasn't surprised when he got a reply almost immediately.
For now! You'll have my final verdict once I meet her. Remember be here at 1, Nik!
He replied quickly.
Of course, I wouldn't dare be late your hormonal highness!
He chuckled once he didn't get a reply, knowing his text had most likely irked his baby sister off a bit. Rebekah had always been the easiest one to be piss off, even when she was younger. He hoped Stefan was faring well with her constant mood swings. Poor bastard, what he gotten himself into?
~O~
Almost 45 minutes later, he heard the door of the apartment building slam shut and bouncing blonde curls heading to the town car. He reached out and opened the door, to reveal a flushed yet stunning Caroline. She was wearing formfitting, sleeveless yellow laced dressed that reached mid-thigh. It was cinched at the waist and showed off her curves.
"You look ravishing in that dress," he smirked, as she slid inside the town car.
"Thanks," she replied, as she placed her phone inside her handbag. He winked at her then leaned forward, towards the driver.
"To the Plaza hotel," he stated. The driver nodded and Klaus sat back down in his seat.
"The Plaza? Seriously?" Caroline asked with wide eyes.
"What can I say? Rebekah wastes no expenses," Klaus muttered.
"Obviously," Caroline responded.
Klaus chuckled, "I apologize in advance for my family. They're not an easy bunch."
"Well, I've dealt with you already so how much worse could it get?" she teased.
"Oh trust me, much worse. Watch out for my brother Kol, he's still in that horny teenage stage," Klaus commented.
"Oh, how old is he?" she asked.
"21," Klaus deadpanned, causing the blonde in front of him to burst out laughing.
"Thanks for the warning," she said through her laughter.
Klaus chuckled, "You're very welcome. I wouldn't want my date to be sexually harassed by my younger brother, now would I?"
"No, of course not," she giggled. Their laughter died down and they both turned away from each other, each looking out their respective windows, with one thought on their mind. Would this be the last time they were going to see each other? What was going to happen?
Maybe this wasn't such a good idea, Caroline thought. They should've left it at the goodbye in front of the bakery, everything would've been so much easier that way. Her thoughts were soon interrupted by the driver's voice.
"Mr. Mikaelson, we're here."
~O~
AN: So how was it? I hope I didn't disappoint! Let me know what you think!
Also, cortadito is Cuban espresso — brewed with sugar — and then topped with some steamed milk.
