Hayley leans over to the coffee table and picks up a tumbler and decanter. She can feel Elijah's eyes on her the whole time, but she acts as if she doesn't notice. She has felt them on her for the past hour while they have talked about pointless stuff and she is feeling slightly under pressure, but she won't let him know that. She gives Elijah the glass and removes the lid from the decanter.
"So, tell me about Italy" Hayley says as she pours Elijah a glass of scotch.
"It was wonderful. I've been countless times, but each time I go it seems even more perfect than the last" Elijah says, smiling at her once he has finished.
"I wanted to go to Italy for my honeymoon, but Klaus had already booked Hawaii."
Once his glass is half full, Hayley puts the decanter back on the coffee table and settles into the couch. She brings her knees up to her chest and hugs her knees, resting her chin on them. She stares at Elijah as he speaks.
"Niklaus never did enjoy our trips to Italy. We use to go every summer as children and stay at our family home there. I and my other siblings adored everything about the place. Even our father enjoyed our time there. We use to look forward to the trip, all of use accept Niklaus" as he speaks he stares into his drink.
"Why didn't he like it there?" Hayley asks, her tone quiet.
Elijah meets her gaze and takes a deep breath.
"I never asked. He isn't one for talking about his emotions. Then again, neither am I."
"He isn't good at talking full stop" Hayley says and Elijah chuckles. She smiles, feeling quite proud that she can amuse him.
"It's something he gets from father" Elijah says before taking a sip of his drink.
Hayley watches him and bites her lip. This might be the perfect time to learn a few things about their father. She knows she will never get anything out of Klaus, but Elijah seems all too open and willing to tell her anything she wants.
"So, what's he like then? Your father?" She asks casually.
Elijah pauses as if he is thinking of the right words to use.
"He is very controlling" is all he says.
"Something else Klaus gets from him then" Hayley says and Elijah smiles.
"Surprising how alike they are considering they loath each other" he says and has a sip of his drink.
Hayley frowns upon hearing this, but then quickly shakes the look of her face, realising that Elijah must think she knows that Klaus and their father hate each other. She knew they weren't on good terms, but she never knew things were that bad between them. But it is still something she should have known. After all, she has been married to Klaus for almost five years now. But it is too late, Elijah has seen her frown and is now giving her a questioning look.
"He hasn't told you, has he?"
"He doesn't really tell me anything" Hayley says and bites her lip.
Elijah's expression changes instantly from a questioning one into a rather sad one. It's suddenly like he understands everything Hayley is going through and feels sorry for her. It's as if he has been through exactly what she is going through. And if he has, maybe he can give Hayley a few tips to help her get through this hard part of her marriage.
"What do you mean?" He asks, his tone is quiet and soft.
"He just doesn't tell me anything. We don't really speak a lot anymore, or spend time together," Hayley says and shrugs like she thinks nothing of it.
"And why is that? If you don't mind me asking."
Hayley refuses to make eye contact with him. It's hard enough for her to try and explain how quickly and anything but gracefully her marriage is failing without having to watch the pity shine out of his eyes at her as she tells him.
"He works a lot. And he keeps secrets and he drinks... We argue a lot."
"What do you argue about?" Elijah asks, staring at her with a certain sadness shining from his eyes.
"At first it was little things, like when he would forget to clean his glass or when I would ignore his calls. But then he started working late. Each night he would come home a little later, and he wouldn't explain why or say sorry, he would just expect me to accept it. So we argued about that a lot. We still do. But we also argue about his business trips. He goes away for four, five days at a time with no explanation, just a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek and he's gone."
"Have you and him discussed any of this?" Elijah asks.
"Of course not. He's never around long enough to have a decent conversation."
Elijah frowns and sighs. A part of him has always known that Klaus would never last in a long term relationship. And he has never been able to imagine his brother being married, especially not before Elijah himself. It's just a shame that they have barely lasted five years together before everything starts to cave in.
"At first I thought it was me. Maybe I was doing something wrong. So I tried to change. But after awhile I realised that it wasn't anything to do with me. Changing things about myself wouldn't help."
A single tear falls and lands on Hayley's knee. She goes to wipe it before any others can follow, but her hand never reaches its destination. It is stopped by Elijah's hand. He grabs her wrist and she looks up to find him staring back at her. He moves his hand to her hand and just simply holds it. Hayley has no idea what to do, she hasn't been in a situation like this with a man, or anyone for so long it's as if she has forgotten how to act.
Hayley suddenly feels stupid. She never cries in front of her friends and family, let alone a complete stranger. Technically he is family, but that is besides the point.
"I'm sorry. I'm not usually like this" Hayley says quietly and Elijah shakes his head.
"There's no need to apologise. I understand that you're going through a lot right now and if you need some space, I can get a room at a local hotel or maybe stay at Rebekah's for the night" he says and Hayley shakes her head.
"No, don't be ridiculous. Don't let me ruin your stay. And anyway, I'm usually a much better host, I'm just... I don't know what I am actually."
"You're perfect just the way you are, and if Niklaus can't see that, then he is a fool" Elijah says, shifting slightly closer to Hayley.
Hayley stares at him for a few seconds, her eyes shimmering with shock, amazement and bewilderment. She has known Elijah for two hours at the most and he is being nicer to her than anyone has in the past couple of years. And here she is pouring her heart out to him as if she has been waiting to do this forever.
"Why are you being so nice to me?" Hayley asks and Elijah tilts his head.
"Would you rather I was unpleasant towards you?" He says and Hayley rolls her eyes which brings a small smile to his lips.
"But seriously, why are you being so nice? You don't even know me."
"I know you well enough to say that the past year or so has been hard for you. And judging from what my sister, Freya, has told me, you didn't have the greatest of upbringings either. The last thing you need is for somebody else to force negativity upon you" Elijah says, finishing with a small, sad smile.
Hayley stares at him in shock and utter surprise. What has Freya told Elijah and how did she find out about her past? While she was in England with Klaus and Freya she didn't speak about her past, her rotten mother or her abusing father. So how has Freya found out? Did she hire someone to investigate her? Did Hayley tell her everything while she was drunk? Did Klaus tell Freya the small handful of information that he knows?
"How do you know about my childhood? How does Freya?" Hayley asks as she slowly pulls her hand out of Elijah's hand.
Elijah leans back and tries to think of how he can put it without hurting Hayley even more. It's going to be hard because what his mother did was boarder line stalking and an extreme breach of Hayley's privacy. There isn't really a nice way to put what he is about to say either. It is probably best if he just comes out with it.
"My mother is extremely protective of me and my siblings, Niklaus especially because of how pushed out he was by father. With powerful connections in London, she hired a man to acquire information on you. She wanted to know about your background, if you had a criminal record and if you were what she calls 'acceptable' for Niklaus" Elijah explains.
Hayley stares at him in shock again. She knew their mother was over protective, but she didn't know she was that bad. She understands why she did it. but she would of preferred her to just ask. And she thought their mother was just being nice to her when in reality, it was probably the fact that she pitied Hayley.
"That doesn't explain how Freya knows."
"My mother told Freya all about the contents of what she found. She told her about your childhood and she told her that you do have a criminal record. And then whilst I was visiting Freya, she brought you into one of our conversations. That's how I found out."
Hayley bites her lip nervously.
"How much do you know?" She asks.
"Just that you had a terrible childhood and you were arrested for underage drinking twice" Elijah replies honestly.
Hayley feels a great sense of relief pass over her. She instantly feels more relaxed knowing that a man she has only known for two or three hours does not know her entire life story. He feels bad for her because of the Klaus situation, god knows how bad he would feel if he knew about her tormented upbringing.
"I'm sorry if I've brought up anything you would rather forget" Elijah says, looking down at the floor.
"Trust me, the things I've seen and had done to me, I can never forget about... But don't worry about it. It's in the past and I'm pretty much over it. I'm just not use to talking about it" Hayley says and when he doesn't look up, she reaches out and puts her hand on his thigh.
The second her hand touches him, he meets her gaze. His eyes are filled with a strange sorrow. A kind of sorrow she has never seen before. Hayley rubs his thigh a few times and then gives him a small smile. He goes to say something but Hayley cuts him off.
"Its okay really."
Elijah returns her small smile with one of his own.
"Like I said, I can leave if you like."
"No. I'm actually enjoying the company a lot more than it might seem."
Elijah smiles at her and she bites her lip as she looks down to the floor, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear.
"Does Rebekah visit often?" Elijah asks, feeling as if it is the right time to change the subject.
"Yeah actually, she comes and visits at least three days a week" Hayley informs him.
"Is she still having trouble with conceiving a child?"
"Yeah, but her and Marcel had an appointment at the clinic about it yesterday so maybe things have changed. Soon she might be having twins for all we know" Hayley says and Elijah smiles.
"She has always wanted children, even since she was one herself. She use to force us to play happy families" Elijah says, chuckling to himself. Hayley chuckles as well.
"Which part of the family were you?" She asks, smiling in anticipation.
"I always played the part of the father" Elijah says and Hayley's smile grows.
"I can picture it." She pauses. "What about Klaus?"
"The naughty child" he says and Hayley laughs and nods her head.
"I should have guessed. What about Freya?"
Elijah's smile disappears.
"She wasn't with us as a child. She was kidnapped by our mother's sister. We only got her back when she was coming to the end of her teen years" he tells her.
"Why did you aunt take her?" Hayley ask, hoping she doesn't sound nosy.
"She could not have children of her own. She saw taking Freya as her only chance at becoming a parent. And it might of worked if Freya hadn't of ran back to us."
Hayley bites her lip.
"How far did she run to get to you?" She asks.
"From Salford to London. I had never met her before that day" Elijah tells her and she stares at him as he tells his story, clinging onto his every word.
"I was twelve and she was seventeen when she returned. She left when I was still in my mothers stomach, when only she and Finn were alive. She returned to meet Rebekah, Kol, Niklaus and myself for the first time. Niklaus wasn't too fond of her at first but I and Rebekah took a liking to her instantly. She was happy to be home" he finishes.
Hayley smiles and shakes her head in amazement.
"Your a good story teller, you know?"
Elijah chuckles at her.
"Well, I've had awhile to perfect it" he says before he finishes his drink.
Hayley stretches backwards and lets out a big yawn. After being up so unusually early she is exhausted and ready for bed. She checks the clock on the wall behind her. It reads ten to ten. She is shocked and almost refuses to believe that they have really been talking for over five hours.
"I think it's time for bed" Hayley says and smiles at Elijah.
"Your room is on the right at the very end of the corridor, opposite mine if you need anything. Bathroom is right next door to you and the dog usually sleeps in your room, so he will probably already be asleep on your bed... Unless he's on mine."
"That's fine. I like animals" he says with a smirk on his face.
Hayley stands and looks around to see if she is forgetting anything.
"Oh yeah, help yourself to anything in the kitchen, Rebekah usually does. Put whatever you want on TV, if you have emails or work things to do, the laptop is in Klaus' office on his coffee table. And there a loads of books in his office as well if you fancy reading." She looks around again. "I think that's it."
Elijah stands up and puts his hand on her upper arm.
"Don't worry about me, I'm perfectly fine. Now, if you're as tired as you look, go to bed and get some sleep. It will do you the world of good" Elijah says and Hayley can't help but smile.
"Your gonna wait up for Klaus?" Hayley asks and Elijah nods.
Hayley chuckles to herself.
"Good luck with that" she says and strokes his bicep once before she makes her way towards the corridor.
Hayley turns back to see Elijah still stood there watching her. He has a small, but beautiful smile on his face and a glimmer in his eyes that is making Hayley get butterflies. She breaks the eye contact and looks down to the floor for a few seconds.
"Night, Elijah" she says and smiles at him.
"Good night, Hayley" he replies and returns her smile.
Hayley takes one last look at him and makes her way down the corridor to her bedroom. She is more happy than she can put into words happy that he decided to come and pay them a visit. Without him, it would just be another lonely night. But Hayley has a feeling that she won't be having many lonely nights any longer.