Chapter 4
CPOV
I don't know when I had fallen asleep but somehow I ended up in Klaus's bed. From what I could see out the window, it was late afternoon. I rolled onto my back and sighed heavily. Yesterday I had a panic attack…I haven't had any of those since right after my dad died. I'm glad Klaus found me though, he seems to really care.
Deciding to go find something to eat, I jumped out of bed.
I tried to tiptoe making sure I wouldn't wake Klaus up, wherever he was. I made my way down the hallway into the living room. I gasped seeing a half-way naked man sleeping on the luxurious gray couch. Klaus's hair was disheveled and his right leg was handing off the edge (he was on his stomach). He was only wearing a pair of black Calvin Klein boxer briefs. My face flushed beat red when he rolled over to his side and I saw his perfectly toned abs. Let me get this straight, he has an accent? AND ABS?! Why is God torturing me? How can there be so much sexiness in one man? It's not even right. I'm just saying, well thinking really…
Anyways, back to reality. I had to literally tear my eyes away from him so I could finish my journey towards the kitchen. I hoped I wouldn't wake him up. Goodness knows what I'd do if he walked in here in his underwear! But I guess fate would have it any other way, because as soon as I opened the fridge I heard his deep voice.
"Caroline?" He said a little groggily. I bit my lip before turning to face him. I had to clear my throat when he, of course, hadn't bothered with normal clothes.
"Ahem…uh-Klaus, hey." He smirked at my nervousness which only added to my nervousness.
"Something wrong, love?" He asked in a husky voice walking closer to me. I swallowed the lump in my throat.
"Uhm. No-I mean yes. Wait-No. I was just hungry." I stumbled when I felt him almost breathing down my neck.
"Is that so?" He said taking the final step towards me. He was flush against me and when I saw him tilt his head to my level I could have sworn he was going to kiss me. He just smirked and reached behind me grabbing a coffee mug, handing it to me.
"Gee thanks." I muttered, still biting my lip. I reached for the cup and he held it higher. I grunted as he lifted it higher laughing at me.
"I'm sorry, love." He said cockily when I crossed my arms over my chest. "Here." I snatched it out of his hand. He held his hands up in defense and I giggled. Did I actually just giggle? Wow. That's totally not embarrassing at all…anyways, moving on. He made me a sandwich, only after I insisted on doing it myself and he refused. After making himself one we sat at his kitchen island. I saw him fidgeting before he cleared his throat and spoke.
"Caroline?" I looked up at him after I took my last bite. "What happened yesterday?" Ah. That's why he was nervous to talk.
"I-I don't want to talk about it Klaus." I sighed. He had a knowing look on his face which told me he understood, yet he persisted.
"I know it's hard, love. But I can't help you if you don't tell me what happened."
"How do you know Klaus?!" I snapped. He needed to stop assuming he understood what I was going through. No one does. "Did your mother destroy your only passion to the point where you hated it? Or did she force you to do something after threatening you?" He looked down at his empty plate. I know I blew up at him, but why does he need to know everything? It's none of his business. "Yeah. I didn't think so." He jerked his head up towards me with what looked like anger sketched in his face.
"You think you're the only person to have family issues, Caroline? Sorry to burst your bubble but you're not. You know nothing." He yelled at me. I raised an eyebrow at him. He sighed and looked down. "My mother had an affair after she had Elijah and I was the product, the forbidden son." He said with disgust in his voice. "When my father, Mikael, found out…" He started shakily.
"You don't need to tell me Nik." I noticed him struggling.
"No you need to understand." He shook his head, as if he was trying to clear his head. "Mikael was furious. He would take his anger out on my mother. When she would pass out from his beatings, he would turn to me. To escape I would paint, and when Mikael found out he would taunt me for hours on end; usually followed by another beating. The day I turned 16 I moved out to live with Elijah. He was the only one who treated me as family. 'Family forever' he always tells me. So you see Caroline…you're not the only one. The difference is I moved on. I admit I struggled, same as you. But Elijah helped me get through it." He finished. "And I want to help you." By now I had hung my head in embarrassment.
"I didn't know…" I whispered. I felt his hand grasp my chin lightly and lift my head up. He was standing right in front of me.
"I know, love. Are you ready to tell me what happened?" He asked me again. I wiped a single tear with my sleeve.
"Um-she…she came to my apartment." I stood up to take our plates to the sink. I hoped he wouldn't follow, of course he did though. He stood and crossed his arms over his chest. I forced myself not to look up at him.
"And?" He asked. I knew he was trying to help. And hell, that's all I had wanted for years. But right now I didn't feel like explaining the deepest parts of my soul to a man I just met.
I huffed before answering. "And she told me to go beg for my spot back. I did and I failed. Now I have no idea what she's going to do." I said starting to scrub the dishes so hard my hands might have started to bleed.
KPOV
"Caroline stop." I told her quietly. I know it was hard to talk about it and damn it! I shouldn't have made her tell me. She scrubbed harder and shook her head. I moved from my place beside the counter towards her. I placed a hand on her shoulder. Her body gave out and she turned around and buried her head in my chest. "Shh…" I said putting a hand on her head. She sobbed quietly for a minute before looking up at me.
"I don't understand Nik…she's my mother." She looked up at me with those beautiful blue eyes.
"I know, love. But we'll figure it out. Together." I said to her. She stopped crying but she still looked so sad. Suddenly I had a brilliant idea. "Do you have any plans today?" I asked her, I knew the answer already but I wanted to be sure.
"No?" She asked me with a raised eyebrow. I grinned.
"Perfect then! Can you be ready to leave in an hour?" I asked her excited. She looked at me with a raised eyebrow. I smiled and made my way back to my bedroom to grab something.
"I guess…what for?" She asked following me. I handed her a towel and pointed towards the shower.
"Just get ready!" I shouted from the doorway. This was going to be the best way to see that wonderful smile of hers.
NPOV
Caroline finished taking a shower and noticed Klaus had put her dance bag beside the bathroom door. She found her brush and her curler inside and decided to do some lose curls. Her makeup was also scattered throughout and after finding everything she needed, she put on her basic foundation, blush and mascara. She was confused about what to wear so she headed out of the bathroom to track Klaus down. She stopped in her tracks when she saw an extravagant light blue dress lying on the bed next to a pair of silver pumps. She slowly walked closer and noticed a note beside the beautiful dress.
Love,
Please don't argue and just put the dress on.
Nik.
Caroline laughed at his choice of words. For only knowing her for a couple of days he knew her so well. She probably would have argued with him. She decided to hell with it and put the dress on. It was a floor length A-line dress with sequence covering the top portion. Her favorite part was the sweetheart neckline and how the sides were cut out. She smirked when she saw that it came low in the back. Of course Klaus would pick something like this out for her. After she put the dress on she decided to fix her hair up into a bun with a few curls hanging out. She went with red lip-stick and sparkly eye shadow and darkened mascara. She took one final glance at the floor length mirror in the room before slipping the shoes, that might she add fitted perfectly, and heading out. She was walking towards the living room when she saw the balcony doors open. She walked over and spotted Klaus holding a cup of bourbon. He was dressed in classy dark black suit with a matching tie. She cleared her throat and he turned around and his mouth dropped open for a second before he knew what he was doing. She noticed him practically drool over her. She blushed before he spoke.
"Love, you look ravishing." He said clearing his throat.
"Not so bad yourself." She smirked. He grabbed her hips and pulled her closer to him. "Nik!" She gasped. He smirked and bent down to her ear.
"If I hadn't already promised to show up I would throw you into bed and never let you leave." He said in a husky whisper. She shivered before taking a breath and pulling back.
"W-well you've already made plans, so let's go." She said clearing her throat. She didn't want him to notice how much of an affect he had on her. Only he had already seen it, and was hell bent on kissing her.
"Right." He held his hand out for her. She placed her dainty hand in his large one and they made their way down to the lobby. A black limo was parked outside and she had wide eyes. He laughed. "This way, love." She pointed at the limo. He nodded smiling. Her eyes lit up and she smiled following him into the car. She watched the world pass her by until they arrived at their destination.
"Now Caroline, there are going to be a lot of people asking a lot of questions…" He said sadly. "But as soon as we get inside you should be fine." He said smiling at her driver opened the door and Klaus got out first. He held his hand out for Caroline and she gracefully took it, after thanking the driver. Klaus smiled at her shocked expression.
"Oh my goodness, Klaus…" She whispered. They had arrived at his family mansion. She had read about an upcoming ball happening here, but she hadn't known it was tonight, nor would she have ever expected to be attending it. She was snapped back into reality when a reporter flashed his camera in front of Caroline and Klaus taking their picture together. More and more people surrounded them and Caroline looked up at Klaus with nervousness when they started asking thousands of questions.
"Mr. Michaelson is she your new girlfriend?"
"Where's Cami?" Cami? Who was Cami? Caroline was surprised to say the least.
"Is she pregnant?"
'Oh my god pregnant?! I thought I looked fine in this dress!' Caroline thought to herself.
"Now, now. I think that is enough. Is that anyway to treat this young lady?" He said in an amused tone. Caroline was shocked by his laid back expression. "This is a friend, now if you would please excuse us to my party I would be much obliged." He said pushing past them towards the front door. He pulled Caroline with him. Once they were inside he turned to her.
"I'm so sorry about that." He said. He noticed her confused facial expression.
"Do I look pregnant?" She asked looking down at her stomach. He laughed and she snapped her head up towards him. "It's not funny!" She yelled slightly smacking his arm.
"No it's not!" He laughed again. "I'm sorry you look amazing, love. They just don't know what boundaries are. They come up with the strangest stories just to make a dollar. Try not to think about it too much." He grabbed her hand. "Tonight will be fun." He said hoping to change the subject. She glanced around the spacious room filled with people talking and dancing. She swallowed the lump in her throat.
"I'm not like these people Nik. You shouldn't have brought me here." She said sadly making a move to turn around. He pulled her flush against him and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"You're right." She looked down sadly before he continued. "You're not like these people, you're better." She laughed. "And trust me, you will have fun. I'll introduce you to Elijah." He said pulling her towards the bar in the back. Caroline closed her eyes for a second to find confidence before following Klaus. She wasn't going to let her past determine her future tonight. She was going to have a good time without worrying about what her mother would think for once. She smiled when Klaus introduced her to Elijah and she shook his hand.
"Tonight will be different." She told herself.
Sweet baby Jesus! I got 20 something followers after one chapter! I am so amazed y'all! Thank you so much for reading and all your amazing reviews! Please don't stop! 5 reviews for chapter 5! :)
Again thank you guys!
